Asu no Yoichi discussion thread [Archive]

something

01-09-2009, 11:46 PM

Episode 1:

- Oh god, another 4:3 show? Can someone remind me what year we're in?
- Hmm... just from the OP I'm not expecting much from this, but it will of course all come down to how good the character interaction is.
- Interestingly, Yoichi himself seems pretty competent and confident. I'm *assuming* this is a harem show, so maybe he'll be a surprisingly good lead?
- Unless he loses his cool when surrounded by tits. Swordsman boy, 17 years old, raised on a mountain... let's send him to the city to learn more about the world!
- Kagome - Hanazawa Kana!
- Ibuki - Satou Rina!
- Ayame - Tomatsu Haruka!
- Chihaya - Tamura Yukari! As happy as I am to hear her, we were *so* close to going 4 for 4 on bringing back some of the Midarezaki siblings. Hanazawa was Yuuka, Satou was Gekka and Tomatsu was Chika.
- Yukarin is totally channeling her Solty Rei 'Celica' voice here. Looks like the personality too, maybe. At the very least she seems like the laid back one of the bunch.
- You know, the character designs in this are actually pretty damn good. If they stay on model, that'll be a huge plus.
- Hah! Okay, I laughed pretty hard at that. Yoichi knocks the guy out with his sword and gets arrested. XD
- Are these sisters cast into pretty stereotypical roles? Yes. Do they fill said roles extremely well? YES! And all four seiyuu choices are absolutely perfect too. Kagome in particular is loooove. So far, this really is surprisingly good.
- Ah, now the real test. He "meets" Ayame.
- Okay, it was pretty cliche, but not too bad. Same with Chihaya. I liked her reaction, or lack thereof.
- Heh, the meeting with Kagome was cute, even if he comes off as a kidnapper.
- Arrested twice in the first episode! That's impressive.

And done! Shit, that was way better than anything I was expecting. A lot will depend on how well Yoichi is able to keep his cool, and how much he breaks down into a sputtering mess at the sight of panties. So far, I'd give him pretty good marks. It'll be easy for it to all fall apart if they rely on typical fanservice gags to the exclusion of good character interaction, but as it stands, I'm totally sticking with this.

HitokiriShadow

01-09-2009, 11:54 PM

And done! Shit, that was way better than anything I was expecting.

The first five minutes were almost painfully dull, but the rest of the episode was indeed above my expectations, but that's actually not saying very much at all. My expectations for this were pretty damn low. It's about as cliched as I was expecting but its pulling it off (for the most part) better than I expected. And the sisters are showing more potential than I was expecting.

Fencedude

01-09-2009, 11:55 PM

A lot will depend on how well Yoichi is able to keep his cool, and how much he breaks down into a sputtering mess at the sight of panties.

Well, so far he seems to be more of a tits man, and, as was pointed out, Ibuki's tits are divine~

Now, here's the question. Just how badly is she going to kick his ass at the Uchiha Divine Wind Style?

I'm putting my bet at "utterly demolished"

HitokiriShadow

01-10-2009, 12:04 AM

01-10-2009, 03:42 AM

Episode 1:
- Oh god, another 4:3 show? Can someone remind me what year we're in?

This took over Yozakura's timeslot and I think that particular network still broadcasts in 4:3 only. It's a curse that is likely to befall whatever replaces this show in the spring too.

Westlo

01-10-2009, 10:20 AM

Ayame is clearly the best girl in the show, though I'm still smh @ the loli after chapter 9 of the manga.

Oh yeah this episode was a good example of changing manga material around a lot but at the same time keeping the spirit of the manga intact. With this sort of material it's not really hard but props to AIC anyway, pity Xebec were incapable of doing this with To Love Ru.

Episode 1:
- Oh god, another 4:3 show? Can someone remind me what year we're in?

This took over Yozakura's timeslot and I think that particular network still broadcasts in 4:3 only. It's a curse that is likely to befall whatever replaces this show in the spring too.

Yep TBS does only 4:3 as seen by both Clannad series, To Love Ry, Yozakura Quartet and now this :(

something

01-10-2009, 04:00 PM

This took over Yozakura's timeslot and I think that particular network still broadcasts in 4:3 only. It's a curse that is likely to befall whatever replaces this show in the spring too.
TBS needs to be purged from the earth with hellfire. Or at least brought into the 21st century.

Senku

01-11-2009, 02:02 AM

So...the first thing the viewer is treated to besides the environment is a close-up of breasts. Expectation meter turned to... fanservice, there; I can watch the rest of the episode now.

*watches episode*

Hey, it wasn't that mindless at all, it was actually a fun episode. I know the main character focus of this episode doesn't appeal that much to the shows' demographic, but I know my fiancee will appreciate it very much. (since she watches these shows with me all the time) As far as the girls go, just going on outfits, Chihaya seems to be my favorite. But I have a sneaking suspicion that I'll wind up liking Ibuki as the show goes on.

pathos

01-11-2009, 03:15 PM

Now, here's the question. Just how badly is she going to kick his ass at the Uchiha Divine Wind Style?

I'm putting my bet at "utterly demolished"

I will be disappointed if he is still conscious when she's finished.

Actually, having witnessed the first bit with his dad (as stupid as his dad seemed), I'm betting he'll totally own her, and she'll hate him for it, ala Ranma

Fencedude

01-11-2009, 04:17 PM

Actually, having witnessed the first bit with his dad (as stupid as his dad seemed), I'm betting he'll totally own her, and she'll hate him for it, ala Ranma

No way.

He's there for training (nominally...) and there's no story if he doesn't find someone to learn from (he's not the brightest guy around).

She'll kick his ass, guaranteed.

Suwako Moriya

01-11-2009, 04:58 PM

The first episode wasn't anything special, and mainly seems to focus on giving us an idea what the guy is like. Apparently he's going to need training in areas outside of fighting.:sweat:

That being said the sisters have potential to be interesting. Hopefully they remember to give all four girls a decent amount of focus. That way I can get a better idea what each of them is like.

01-11-2009, 11:27 PM

Well this was actually better than I was expecting. I was anticipating something along the lines of Amanaedeiyo, which would have been...... unfortunate. Can't say it's anything special, but I was entertained enough to stick with it for now.

Whoomp

01-12-2009, 03:28 PM

You can really tell that AIC (the masters of harem) was behind this series. Yoichis "forest-life" was amusing in a very ridiculous way and the ecchi moments somehow didn't feel overdone. The characters seemed interesting but you didn't really get to know them that much from the first episode, sure many of them seemed very stereotypical but knowing as little about them as I do now I shouldn't be hasty to judge them. I just hope that his hero-attitude will get annoying as the series progress.

kito

01-16-2009, 12:41 AM

Nothing new here but good-natured fun the whole way. Yoichi looks like Saito Hiiraga but his voice is something else. I must say that Nobuhiko Okamoto is really on his way to versatility as a seiyuu. We heard him years back as the good-hearted sky-loving Yorito from that sleeper hit "Sola", and then he took us to the dark side with his take as the psycho on angeldust Accelerator from "To Aru Majutsu No Index" (whoa, he's reteaming with Rina Satou here; Hanazawa and Tomatsu, you're not alone!) With this mild-mannered but tough Yoichi, Okamoto has fast become one of the best male performers in town. Oh by the way, is that a little Accelerator I'm getting from those "visions"?

As if Kazuya Nakai needs to show more of what makes him fun. His Washizu has all the timing down pat that what could easily be a mere rival for Ibuki's charms has become a genuinely amiable side character. Washizu has tons of infectious energy, and luckily for this show, "Seto No Hanayome" had no vacancy for him.

For the girls' side, Tomatsu rules completely and she's attained superstar status in my book; wasn't it a while ago she played Lala from that troublesome show? Meanwhile, Satou is up there with Noto as the "it's her" actress, in which you can hear her character, point, and say, "it's her!" and still enjoy the role all the same.

On a final note, the show has good memory. It actually remembered what it did with a window.

Fencedude

01-16-2009, 12:55 AM

On a final note, the show has good memory. It actually remembered what it did with a window.

In the future, please make sure you use the "quote" button, and quote one of the posts discussing the episode in question. Do not use the "reply" button at the bottom.

HitokiriShadow

01-17-2009, 11:37 PM

Better than episode 1 simply because it lacked that weak beginning and the sisters were a bigger part of it. That said, I'm liking the Washiya and his crony too.

It's still dumb and cliched, but its still damn fun and in no small part to the four sisters. I still can't choose a favorite but I would lean towards Chihaya at the moment, mainly I love that voice. But to say that Ayame or Ibuki rank second or third is hard because they are all three great fun and none are significantly better than the others. Kagome is dead last mainly because of her relative lack of screentime and the others are just that much fun, but I loved her 0_0 face when Ayame left her and she realized she was stuck with clean up.

Fencedude

01-18-2009, 12:10 AM

It's still dumb and cliched, but its still damn fun and in no small part to the four sisters. I still can't choose a favorite but I would lean towards Chihaya at the moment, mainly I love that voice. But to say that Ayame or Ibuki rank second or third is hard because they are all three great fun and none are significantly better than the others. Kagome is dead last mainly because of her relative lack of screentime and the others are just that much fun, but I loved her 0_0 face when Ayame left her and she realized she was stuck with clean up.

Its definitely not doing anything particularly new, but its doing it all very well. I actually like all the sisters about the same, with a bit of an edge for Chihaya and Ayame.

Also, totally rooting for Wa-san when it comes to Ibuki.

Suwako Moriya

01-18-2009, 04:02 AM

Better than episode 1 simply because it lacked that weak beginning and the sisters were a bigger part of it.

It was nice to get a better idea as to what the sisters were like and helps to better form my initial view on them. Which is as follows....

Kagome, she's cute and everything. However right now she feels more like a bonus than an actual character. A nice bonus and everything, but I need a bit more to form an actual opinion on her.

Chihaya, she has partially the same issue as Kagome. In that I need to get to know her a bit better. However she did make a much stronger impression on me than Kagome did. Also the design and voice do help elevate her up above Kagome in some ways.

Ibuki, one of the two sisters to get decent focus. I'm rather mixed on her. Some of her actions make me positive towards her. Yet other actions by her make her quite frustrating to be honest. It's hard to tell if she'll be the type where the flaws help make her more interesting or the type where the flaws ruin her character. That being said, she does have a nice figure.

Ayame, the other sister to get decent focus. I'm going to say it flat out, she has potential to be my favorite sister. Out of all the sisters her characterization felt the strongest. Her feelings on being compared to Ibuki make me feel her for her. Also while she's not immune to getting angry, her getting angry didn't seem to bother me as much as Ibuki did.

So as of right now I'd say Ayame>Chihaya>Ibuki=Kagome. The last two are kind of hard. Kagome had less focus than Kagome. Which meant less time to impress me, but it also meant less time to frustrate me. Both of which Ibuki succeeded at.

Suwako Moriya

01-18-2009, 04:12 AM

Also, totally rooting for Wa-san when it comes to Ibuki.

I'll support this idea for two reasons. First, because it would be interesting to see things work out way. Second, it prevents a Yoichi x Ibuki pairing. Granted being perverted I'd rather the four sisters have their way with each other and forget about the guy.

However if they're going to end up pairing Yoichi with one of the sisters then I'd like to see him end up with Ayame. I'm not sure I can't explain it right now, but it feels like she could match up better with the guy than the other three sisters.

All I know is I don't want him to end up with Ibuki. A match up with her is already feeling like one of those pairings where the only true justification boils down to "because we said so".

Okay maybe it's too early to judge Ibuki as the undesired choice and Ayame as the desired one, but until things change later I'm in the Ayame camp. Pure and simple.

something

01-18-2009, 04:34 AM

Episode 2:

- "Ara ara, looks like you weren't beaten enough." Ahahaha, Ibuki <3
- Washizu has a thing for Ibuki? Now more reason for him to want to beat up Yoichi. Poor Washizu, he's actually very emotionally fragile beneath his tough guy exterior. =P
- Ayame is a problem child. =( She worries too much about her breasts too, they're just fine! Though living with Ibuki can't be easy.
- I feel slightly sorry for Washizu.
- Wow, we're getting into the jealousy phase already. Ayame is totally envious of Ibuki's closeness with Youichi.
- Bokuto harakiri...
- I had predicted pretty confidently after episode one that my favorites would go Kagome > Chihaya > Ayame > Ibuki, but man Ayame is totally winning me over with her troubled middle sister + modest proportions + tsundere. I like her. I like her a lot. She's suddenly reminding me of my favorite Popotan sister, the middle sister Mai, for pretty much the same reasons.
- Chihaya is lovely too, with her striped thighhighs, Celica-flavored Yukarin personality and lovely antenna hair.
- OH GOD SUCH DELICIOUS TSUNDERE. AYAME I LOVE YOU. Soooooo much love for Kagome too. Her and Ayame cooking is toooo cute, and Hanazawa Kana is hands down the greatest "cute little girl" seiyuu ever.
- ;_; Okay, there's no going back, Ayame is absolutely my favorite. I moe so absurdly hard for this sort of character. I damn near teared up when she ran away with the porridge and lamented how things never work out for her. :sd:
- And Tsubasa should be a very sexy addition.

This is an incredibly pleasant surprise. I really really liked ep one, and this was even better, so I'm definitely considering this one of the top shows to watch this season.

Westlo

01-18-2009, 04:36 AM

Okay maybe it's too early to judge Ibuki as the undesired choice and Ayame as the desired one, but until things change later I'm in the Ayame camp. Pure and simple.

Like I said after episode 1, Ayame is the best girl clearly! Though she's kinda the punching bag for the entire manga which just adds to her charm lol...

Suwako Moriya

01-18-2009, 06:14 AM

Like I said after episode 1, Ayame is the best girl clearly! Though she's kinda the punching bag for the entire manga which just adds to her charm lol...

The other three each have their good aspect, but in terms of the complete package, Ayame is truly the best. I'm not sure what to think of the punching bag thing. However, I do she thinks deserves to ultimately find happiness in the long run.

something

01-18-2009, 06:28 AM

Like I said after episode 1, Ayame is the best girl clearly! Though she's kinda the punching bag for the entire manga which just adds to her charm lol...I'm not sure what to think of the punching bag thing. However, I do she thinks deserves to ultimately find happiness in the long run.
I doubt this show can shit on her as much as Popotan shat on Mai, but that just makes the payoff all the more rewarding when they overcome everything. Although I'm not expecting this show to be as serious as Popotan turned out to be... Anyway, Ayame has absolutely everything going for her for me, even if she thinks life is totally against her. :sd: Fight Ayame-chan! Fight!

Suwako Moriya

01-18-2009, 06:38 AM

Okay, there's no going back, Ayame is absolutely my favorite. I moe so absurdly hard for this sort of character.

I don't know why, but the phrase "moe hard" gives a bad mental image. Regardless, it's good to see another choosing Ayame as the favorite. That being said, it will be curious to see how I feel about the four sisters in the long term.

Suwako Moriya

01-18-2009, 06:44 AM

Anyway, Ayame has absolutely everything going for her for me, even if she thinks life is totally against her. :sd: Fight Ayame-chan! Fight!

We need to help Ayame-chan prepare for battle. Perhaps she needs some comforting. Yeah that sounds like a good idea.

01-19-2009, 09:42 PM

I still have mixed feelings overall, but it's a pleasant show to watch given the right expectations. I'm honestly very tired of ecchi humor in general right now, but likable characters keep me with shows like this anyway. It's foolish to expect them to tone it down since it is a staple in these shows but I was still a bit disappointed at how heavy the felt they needed to lay on the ecchi comedy with Yoichi.

That said I like all the characters so far. Ayame wins the episode for going from tsun to dere dere in record time here. She is probably my favorite so far, though we'll have to see what Tsubasa brings to the table. Cute short pink hair and a figure that screams moe is always promising. Just hope her personality is reasonable.

I have a gut feeling this will end with no real pairing, but if there is one I really hope they impress us and dodge the obvious one this time. Ayame deserves her chance.

something

01-25-2009, 06:50 PM

Episode 3:

- Tsubasa~~ I feel sorry for her already. Angela is going to make her life difficult.
- Ayame! Ayame! Ayame! God, she is so much better than Ibuki. But I'm not really sure she and Yoichi really make for much of a couple. Well, whatever form it takes, I demand that things end happily for her. Also, Chihaya is awesome as always. I like how Kagome joined in with the devious laugh.
- Ahaha, oh man, Tsubasa and her struggles to be a normal girl. She may become my second favorite after Ayame.
- Bwahaha, she slices a soccerball in half with her hand! Too bad she's just going to fall in love with Yoichi... but that is what this show is all about of course.
- Angela's disappointment... XD
- Oh shit, might Tsubasa fall for Wa-san instead? That would be perfect! So much better than having her just go after Yoichi.
- o_O That's some kinky underwear, Tsubasa. So, like the OP implied, when you take her clothes off she turns into a fighting machine. Damn she's hot. And she wears a weighted uniform.
- Woah, Angela is kinda a bitch. She's basically used emotional manipulation to condition Tsubasa's reaction to embarrassment.
- You know, I am totally rooting for Yoichi to kick Angela's ass. I do not like her at all.
- Well, no ass kicking but he gave her a good talking to, and to my shock, she actually took it to heart. And the scene between her and Tsubasa was really sweet. Wow, this could be awesome, if Tsubasa is going to be allowed to live more or less as a normal girl. Well, until they feel the need to inject some drama into the show and push her school to the bring and force her hand.
- AWWWW SO MOE. TSUBASAAA!!! That hat, oh god that hat.
- And Tsubasa x Wa-san confirmed! Thank god. I just hope he gets a clue eventually and realizes she's totally better than Ibuki.

This show is continuing to go way, way past my expectations. Sure, they were low expectations, but even then it's really quite good on its own merits.

Chihaya next time!

Fencedude

01-25-2009, 06:56 PM

Tsubasa's adorable~~

sawmill

01-25-2009, 07:56 PM

01-25-2009, 08:19 PM

Tsubasa is love. I was on the fence with this show but she sealed the deal. Call me crazy but I thought she was cuter in her school uniform than in the deliverty girl outfit seen at the end of the episode.

On the other hand, Ibuki is basically turning into Naru Narusegawa. Ugh. I need to say that again: UGH. If there weren't two awesome characters in this show already (Ayame and Tusbasa) then I'd be gone to get away from having to watch her annoying tsun tsun act.

HitokiriShadow

01-25-2009, 08:33 PM

Tsubasa is very cute and worthy addition to the cast. And amazingly, she didn't fall for the male lead! She's going for Wa-chan instead, which should be much more amusing.

Yoichi is an idiot, but it amusing to watch Ibuki getting pissed next to him.

something

01-25-2009, 08:54 PM

A bit offtopic but why does something's posts always seem to be posted backwards in time? That is, his R2 updates - and I do look for them - always seem to be BEFORE the last post read that VB takes me to. And I haven't read his episode summary yet! Rarely a problem anywhere else in AoD except in General Anime subforum......
Just mine, or does this happen with other people? o_O That's a bit odd.

I know at one point after switching to Mania there was a problem where post timestamps were getting screwed up and things appeared out of order. But that hasn't happened in awhile, and when it did it affected everyone.

something

01-25-2009, 08:55 PM

On the other hand, Ibuki is basically turning into Naru Narusegawa. Ugh. I need to say that again: UGH. If there weren't two awesome characters in this show already (Ayame and Tusbasa) then I'd be gone to get away from having to watch her annoying tsun tsun act.
That's why she's by far my least favorite of the girls, but going into cute chibi mode when she's pissed makes it a lot harder to hate her. So I'm still positive on her so far, but everyone else is just soooooooooo much better.

Suwako Moriya

01-25-2009, 10:56 PM

Tsubasa makes a wonderful addition to the series. She's moe, cute, attractive, and so many other things. As for Angela? Early on I wasn't sure about her to be honest. However now that she's realized what's actually important, she stands a good chance of being at least a decent addition.

It's kind of fun that Chihaya and Kagome seem to be supporting Ayame. Either that or the two like to mess with her. Either way I'm still supporting you Ayame, you're so much better than Ibuki.

sawmill

01-30-2009, 08:59 PM

something

02-01-2009, 02:26 AM

Episode 4:

- Yoichi and Ibuki finally spar, and it seems pretty even until he accidentally cuts through her clothing.
- So I get why Ibuki beat up Yoichi, but what did the kids have to do with it? She just seems to punch people completely at random when she's pissed. Normally that doesn't bother me *too* much, but when all her sisters are so vastly superior it really makes her look that much worse in comparison.
- Ayame gets tired of their violence x retard loveydovey antics and goes to take a bath. In comes Chihaya too, without her glasses and looking so very hot.
- Wa-san arrives at the dojo to return the handkerchief Ibuki gave him. Here's hoping he wises up really quickly and realizes Tsubasa is a billion times better than Ibuki.
- "She's only fifteen..." Bwhahahahaa, yeah, sure. As they're panning past her large breasts. Oh anime, you're so... anime. She gets really excited when Yoichi says he likes her manga. An excited Chihaya is pretty cute.
- Bwhahaha, Ibuki bursts in as Chihaya is teasing Yoichi, and Chihaya throws him under the Ibuki-bus without a moment of hesitation. She then switches to teasing Ibuki. Hah. Chihaya is wonderful.
- And man, Chihaya really does feel like she should be the second oldest, doesn't she? But Ayame is actually older. Fantastic Chihaya eyecatch, btw.
- Kagome proudly returns from school with something she made in art class, but Yoichi (being chased by Ibuki) crashes into her and it breaks. Yoichi apologizes, and Ibuki... completely blames him and doesn't take the slightest bit of responsibility even though it was totally her fault. What the fuck? She never ceases to rub me the wrong way, and I'm someone who loves all sorts of violent tsunderes, even Louise. I think the problem is that Ibuki isn't tsundere per se, she's just a crazy bitch.
- Speaking of bitches, some other students at Chihaya's cram school tear up her manga draft she was working on in class, saying that manga is just a stupid hobby. Chihaya acts strong but she's obviously really hurt by it.
- Chihaya's mini-breakdown feels a bit rushed but it's satisfying to see Yoichi beat the shit out of the goons who messed with her. I was expecting him to pull back and leave them with a lecture, but they look pretty unequivocally fucked up when Chihaya finds them in a heap outside school. Yay Yoichi.

Good stuff. Chihaya is definitely best when she's making comments on the side though. She was really cute in this episode, but the drama didn't really do anything for me. Leave that for Ayame please.

Suwako Moriya

02-01-2009, 07:33 AM

Ah, so with this episode we finally get some real focus on Chihaya. Which is good because it helps give me a better idea how I feel about her. Over all, I can say I'm quite positive towards her. Although, I'm still partial towards Ayame. Regardless those two continue to be the better half of the sisters.

Well to be fair, Kagome hasn't really gotten enough focus either way for me to tell how I feel about her. For the most part, she simply continues to be just there for the most part.

Ibuki, she forces me to ask a simple question. Is she capable of anything aside from being a violent bitch? Okay to be fair, she does show moments of kindness. However it's liking finding the needle in a haystack. Or would that be straw of hay in a stack of needles? It seems her main purpose right now is to have a nice body to look at it.

Fencedude

02-01-2009, 05:13 PM

- Bwhahaha, Ibuki bursts in as Chihaya is teasing Yoichi, and Chihaya throws him under the Ibuki-bus without a moment of hesitation. She then switches to teasing Ibuki. Hah. Chihaya is wonderful.

That was hilarious. Mean, but hilarious.

- And man, Chihaya really does feel like she should be the second oldest, doesn't she? But Ayame is actually older. Fantastic Chihaya eyecatch, btw.

Watch Kagome also grow up with a nice rack. Poor Ayame.

- Kagome proudly returns from school with something she made in art class, but Yoichi (being chased by Ibuki) crashes into her and it breaks. Yoichi apologizes, and Ibuki... completely blames him and doesn't take the slightest bit of responsibility even though it was totally her fault. What the fuck? She never ceases to rub me the wrong way, and I'm someone who loves all sorts of violent tsunderes, even Louise. I think the problem is that Ibuki isn't tsundere per se, she's just a crazy bitch.

You know what? Fuck Ibuki. Just fuck her. She has demonstrated absolutely no redeeming characteristics other than having nice tits. She's not even Tsundere, she's just a violent bitch. They turned what is normally one character (the violent tsundere) into two characters (violent non-tsundere and mostly-non-violent tsundere) and thus made Ibuki completely without any redeeming values.

- Chihaya's mini-breakdown feels a bit rushed but it's satisfying to see Yoichi beat the shit out of the goons who messed with her. I was expecting him to pull back and leave them with a lecture, but they look pretty unequivocally fucked up when Chihaya finds them in a heap outside school. Yay Yoichi.

CHIIIIHAAAAAAAYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!

I think she's my favorite overall, just barely edging out Ayame.

Good stuff. Chihaya is definitely best when she's making comments on the side though. She was really cute in this episode, but the drama didn't really do anything for me. Leave that for Ayame please.

Ayame's definitely better for Drama though. Let Ayame have the drama and let Chihaya stick with being meddlesome.

Suwako Moriya

02-01-2009, 05:38 PM

Watch Kagome also grow up with a nice rack. Poor Ayame.

Should we try and guess at what age Kagome will surpass Ayame in that regard?

You know what? Fuck Ibuki. Just fuck her. She has demonstrated absolutely no redeeming characteristics other than having nice tits.

And sadly for her having a nice body only gets you so far. Since other characters are capable of having an enjoyable personality to go along with the said nice body.

She's not even Tsundere, she's just a violent bitch.

Heh, given that you've brought this line up before for other characters. I wonder if you have a list of the said girls who fail at being tsundere and instead qualify as violent bitches.

Ayame's definitely better for Drama though. Let Ayame have the drama and let Chihaya stick with being meddlesome.

Perhaps, but I think what matters most for me is that both get plenty of screen time. The more screen time for Ayame and Chihaya the better. The less for Ibuki the better.

something

02-01-2009, 06:03 PM

Should we try and guess at what age Kagome will surpass Ayame in that regard?
Probably 12. Poor Ayame^2.

(Although, really, Ayame has nice boobs, just not big ones. Her proportions are fantastic.)

Suwako Moriya

02-01-2009, 07:04 PM

Should we try and guess at what age Kagome will surpass Ayame in that regard?
Probably 12. Poor Ayame^2.

And thus we have our dramatic plot line for a future episode. Or maybe not, I'm not sure if this show will try things like time skips or magical growth items...

(Although, really, Ayame has nice boobs, just not big ones. Her proportions are fantastic.)

I'll see second this statement. Also, it should be stated that she has a simple, but interesting hair style. I didn't notice it before, but it's none-symmetrical. Yeah, I fail at paying attention.

02-01-2009, 07:47 PM

I might not be able to keep watching this because of Ibuki. Even with most of the rest of the cast being awesome, she just sours my mood. I need a mechanism to redirect that irritation into something more harmless.....

Suwako Moriya

02-01-2009, 07:52 PM

I might not be able to keep watching this because of Ibuki. Even with most of the rest of the cast being awesome, she just sours my mood.

Ibuki can indeed be quite frustrating, but my hope is that Ayame and Chihaya will continue to be worth dealing with her existence. Of course the show could eventually reach a point where it acts like only Ibuki exists.

something

02-01-2009, 08:01 PM

Of course the show could eventually reach a point where it acts like only Ibuki exists.
That'll be the problem. Right now I can deal with her crap because I like everyone else, from Ayame to Wa-san. Even Yoichi doesn't bother me. But if the last few eps are pure Ibuki x Yoichi, it'll test my patience. However, it's a harem anime (well... actually, it's decidedly more like a love triangle at this point), so I find it more likely the final plot-like arc will be largely irrelevant samurai stuff with a vague romantic non-conclusion tacked onto the end. Which might be for the best.

Suwako Moriya

02-01-2009, 08:22 PM

But if the last few eps are pure Ibuki x Yoichi, it'll test my patience.

I can already see a scenario Ibuki continues to get worse as a character and Ibuki X Yoichi ends up boiling down to "Because we said so".

However, it's a harem anime (well... actually, it's decidedly more like a love triangle at this point), so I find it more likely the final plot-like arc will be largely irrelevant samurai stuff with a vague romantic non-conclusion tacked onto the end. Which might be for the best.

Come to think of it, the third episode did give some not so vague hints about there being some future villain to face. So defeating the person in question could be used as way to provide the series with at least some form of cut-off point. In any case, I'll gladly take a none-romantic conclusion over an Ibuki-ending.

HitokiriShadow

02-01-2009, 09:41 PM

Yay, Chihaya episode. And she's a mangaka. I'm always impressed when middle/highschool students in anime are able to manage school and the rigorous professional mangaka workload. At least here they make it clear that its a hell of a lot of work for Ayame and not exactly like working part time at a restaurant down the street.

Anyway, Chihaya is awesome. And incredibly well-developed for a 15 year old. Those are huge breasts by any standards (especially in the eye-catch. *BOING*) but especially for a 15 year old. Also, I liked how she said 4 sisters when she was teasing Yoichi, as if Kagome was an option.

Ayame is great too and Kagome is cute but not nearly as interesting as Ayame and Chihaya.

I'm really not liking Ibuki. This time, she even beat her students for the crime of being there when Yoichi fucked up and then blamed solely Yoichi for breaking Kagome's project when she was clearly just as much at fault I was hoping for her to be a Nadeshiko type with awesome sword skills when she got serious, but instead she's an okay swordswoman (based on what little we've seen her do with it) with violent bitch tendencies. I wouldn't say she's like Naru because Naru Narusegawa is downright likable in comparison (and I actually did like Naru, though I was annoyed with her a lot).

something

02-08-2009, 05:46 PM

Episode 5:

- Boo, it's an Ibuki episode.　Maybe she'll spend it wisely and become less annoying by the end (haha, ok, doubt it). Cute first year named Hinagata gives Yoichi a love letter, Ibuki gets jealous, the expected ensues.
- I do like that Yoichi found out the real meaning of a date at the beginning, though. If they stretched the whole "Oh, this is a letter of challenge!" thing out, it would have gotten lame fast.
- Ibuki's jealousy results in her telling Yoichi go to on a date with her first, allegedly as "practice" so he doesn't screw up the real one and tarnish the name of the school.
- And annoying as she is, she's still so damn hot. A shame she didn't go with her first choice of clothing, though. Second one is nice but the first was better.
- Chihayaaaaa!!!! This is what she does best - tease everyone else, especially Ibuki.
- The date starts and Yoichi gets some normal clothing.
- At the same store is Ayame and two friends. Also, boob grabbing! "Aren't you going to pay?" Heh. She watches them as they go bowling, but Chihaya and Kagomi show up and Ayame leaves. Cue entrance of MYSTERIOUS MASKED MAN (that nobody cares about).
- Awesome Kagome eyecatch!
- Ayame looks so sad. ;_; Wa-san should have gone to cheer her up. Er, well, not that that would have worked.
- Tsubasa! For a second.
- Ibuki falls in a fountain, Yoichi after her. She doesn't beat him up though, so I guess this is progress.
- And it turns out Hinagata was a spy planning to take Yoichi out. Not a big surprise. She has some delicious zettai ryouiki though.
- So he beats her and and the date with Ibuki ends and so on.

Not bad, actually. An Ibuki episode could have been a disaster but by the end she was acting okay. I doubt it'll last (until the next time we focus on her anyway) though. Still, needs more Ayame!

Preview was... lol.

Suwako Moriya

02-08-2009, 08:12 PM

All things considered, Ibuki came off pretty well in this episode. Almost enough to make forget about my anger towards her in episode 2-4. In any case, Hinagata was pretty cute even if she was yet another enemy.

02-08-2009, 09:19 PM

The show's lack of Tsubasa is already bothering me.....

This is shaping up to be a rival suitor of the week vs. Ibuki kind of show really fast, with the other sisters windowdressing for angst and entertainment. *sigh*

Suwako Moriya

02-08-2009, 09:39 PM

This is shaping up to be a rival suitor of the week vs. Ibuki kind of show really fast, with the other sisters windowdressing for angst and entertainment. *sigh*

Maybe, they'll mix it up by making some of the assassins guys? Then again, I already realize they can find a way to use that to bring Yoichi and Ibuki closer. On the bright side at least they showed Ibuki is capable of something besides being a bitch. Although it won't mean much if this turns out to be a fluke...

HitokiriShadow

02-09-2009, 01:01 AM

Ibuki didn't do anything particularly obnoxious this episode and was suprisingly tolerable, but she's just.... boring. All of her sisters are more superior and more interesting. Or at least cuter, in Kagome's case; she's just kind of here, but she's cute and mildly amusing, which is better than Ibuki.

The first 3/4 of the episode were rather dull aside from the younger sisters's appearances and Wa-san's obligatory fantasy. The last bit with Hinagata was decent though.

Fencedude

02-09-2009, 03:25 AM

I really like Ibuki's tits.

I'm not to thrilled with the rest of her though.

*yawns*

What is passing for a "plot" in this show is getting increasingly lame.

Suwako Moriya

02-09-2009, 03:36 AM

I really like Ibuki's tits.

They're quite hypnotic and make it hard for me to completely hate her. So maybe the best thing for her to do is just let us stare at her and do nothing else?

What is passing for a "plot" in this show is getting increasingly lame.

I wonder how many of these random assassins will matter past their initial episodes. Either way at this point, I wouldn't mind them taking a break from the so called plot...

something

02-09-2009, 02:14 PM

What is passing for a "plot" in this show is getting increasingly lame.
They're making a huge mistake by not making this be about Ayame (or Tsubasa). Yoichi and Ibuki absolutely cannot carry the show themselves.

Suwako Moriya

02-09-2009, 02:29 PM

They're making a huge mistake by not making this be about Ayame (or Tsubasa). Yoichi and Ibuki absolutely cannot carry the show themselves.

Having Ayame become the lead character and giving Tsubasa her own spin-off would be for the best. Yoichi is decent (although not great) for the type of character he is, but yeah there's no way he can carry the show by himself. Same is true for Ibuki, having her as part of the group is fine. However that's just it, she should simply be part of the group.

something

02-16-2009, 05:14 PM

Episode 6:

- Wa-san episode. I don't dislike him, but no way in hell will he be able to carry an episode. Also, he has horrible taste in women. Go for Tsubasa!
- And somehow he ends up joining the Ikaruga dojo.
- Random stupid assassin of the week etc etc,
- Eyecatch with Wa-san and... the hell, is that a genderswapped Torigaya? Is there something he's not telling us?
- Kagome! About time we get a little bit more of her. Seems Chihaya's manga is doing well.
- Man I don't know what the hell Chihaya is wearing, but it's awesome. And Kagome hanging on her makes for a great accessory.
- AYAME! AYAME! Looking sad again. ;_; Chihaya reads the entire situation from start to finish at a glance.
- And we meet a potential love interest for Kagome?
- OH GOD AYAME IS HOT! She comes into the dojo looking so, so sexy.
- ...lol the assassin got lost.

I thought this was going to be a pretty lame episode, but it wound up being pretty good, actually. That's entirely because of Chihaya, Kagome and Ayame though.

Yes! Swimsuits next week! Ayame look wonderful in that bikini (they totally shrunk her boobs in the preview shot though, wtf?), and i think Chihaya had a white school swimsuit on... Tsubasa comes too!

Nosredna

02-16-2009, 07:41 PM

Suwako Moriya

02-16-2009, 07:43 PM

I haven't been following this thread, but I'm glad to see I'm not the only person that thinks Ayame should be the lead character.

It helps that Ayame has made the best over all impression on me. When compared to the other three sisters. Hence why I lean towards the idea of her getting more screen time.

Suwako Moriya

02-17-2009, 10:23 PM

All things considered, the episode was pretty decent. Chihaya had quite the awesome outfit. Ayame continues to remind us that she needs more focus. Kagome continues to be quite cute. So the next episode will involve swimsuits? That has definite potential.

Suwako Moriya

02-21-2009, 09:57 PM

All right then, I'm not sure what to make of the two assassins of the episode. And if I say anything it will be negative. On a related note, we get a better view of the male and female villain of the series. Still I would like to see the girl without that mask on.

In this episode, we got an eye catch of Angela. However it's one of those try too hard and thus fail type eye catches. I mean she looks fine in the actual episode. However in the eye catch, she looks completely wrong on several levels...

Poor Ayame, she apparently believes in wearing breast pads. So yeah her issues with her chest size are definitely still there. Especially with all the competition she has to deal with in the series. Especially from her older sister and her younger sisters.

Yes, I did say sisters. Remember how we asked how long it would take for Kagome to surpass Ayame? Well let's just say it might be sooner than you think. Heck, she could even surpass Ibuki if things keep up. For the record, I have no idea what to say about this at all....

Fencedude

02-23-2009, 11:49 PM

Wa-san's much more amusing than he really should be, but Ayame, Chihaya and Kagome really are the only reasons to watch this.

Fencedude

02-24-2009, 01:04 AM

Ibuki, if you don't want guys to look at you like that, DON'T WEAR SKIMPY SWIMWEAR JESUS CHRIST

Also, I figured out about Kagome when she produced "sarashi" from nowhere, but damn, talk about early blooming. She might surpass Chihaya and Ibuki.

Westlo

02-24-2009, 01:20 AM

Ibuki's swimwear is greatness personified.

02-26-2009, 01:08 AM

Am I the only one who thought the whole subplot with Kagome having to hide her big rack was 100% creepy? She's a little kid. Sorry Asu no Yoichi, but if you're going to hit me with Ibuki and creepy fetish appeals I'm afraid I cannot stay on board any longer. This show would need about 500% more Tsubasa than it has right now to keep me interested at this point.

Suwako Moriya

02-26-2009, 02:38 AM

Am I the only one who thought the whole subplot with Kagome having to hide her big rack was 100% creepy? She's a little kid.

Actually, right now I'm the stunned phase. I'll get to the phase where I find it creepy after I'm done being stunned. Actually it would be a little less creepy if the size was a bit smaller. Then again exaggeration seems to be a rule to these things.... Regardless, I doubt you're the only one who considered it creepy.

Sorry Asu no Yoichi, but if you're going to hit me with Ibuki and creepy fetish appeals I'm afraid I cannot stay on board any longer.

What if Ibuki forged weapons out of those creepy fetish appeals and then hit you with them? Would you feel motivated to keep watching? In all seriousness, I'm thinking of eventually dropping it myself or at least putting it on hold for now.

This show would need about 500% more Tsubasa than it has right now to keep me interested at this point.

To be honest, I do have to wonder how well Tsubasa would work as a more major focus as opposed to a supporting character. Imagine her with her own series.

Suwako Moriya

03-02-2009, 08:11 AM

In this episode members of a gang kidnap Ayame thinking that she's Washizu's girlfriend in order to get "revenge" or whatever. So yeah the episode was mostly focused on those two. Save for the "Ibuki is required to be a bitch" moment, the episode was one of the better ones.

I've got to love how in spite of the claim that Ayame is supposed to be flat-chested, when they show her chest up close, it's actually pretty nice looking. Granted I have to remember in the world of anime, anything below a C Cup is considered flat.:sweat:

It's kind of surprising how Washizu continues to be one of the better characters in the series. He just need to remove the rose colored glasses when it comes to Ibuki. Also, he should really find out why his friend keeps getting shorter.:sweat:

Either way this episode proves I'm weak willed. I was originally not going to bother watching it, but finding out who was focused on convinced me. Regardless, watching at least one more episode is probably for the best anyway. Akin to giving the show one more chance before making a final decision.

In any case, the next episode is going to involve a festival it seems. Which means Yukatas or Kimonos or whatever. So I guess it has potential to be fun. Unless of course it ends up mostly involving Ibuki finding ways to get mad Yoichi for the heck of it...

03-02-2009, 11:29 AM

I've got to love how in spite of the claim that Ayame is supposed to be flat-chested, when they show her chest up close, it's actually pretty nice looking. Granted I have to remember in the world of anime, anything below a C Cup is considered flat.:sweat:

Well, flat chested by this genre's standards is still at least a C-cup to the rest of the world. If a girl's chest isn't giving her spinal problems she's labeled flat chested. I like Ayame's proportions because she looks normal. Anime girls with breasts that look like 40 pound water balloons have always creeped me out because it just isn't natural.

Suwako Moriya

03-12-2009, 04:11 PM

Kagome and Chihaya teach us the proper way to enjoy popsicles. Granted, it may require more study before we can truly say we have learned our valuable lesson.

Washizu has issues with being taught by Yoichi instead of Ibuki. During a conversation with Torigaya, he blurts about liking Ikuraga. Referring to Ibuki, but as you can guess the one who gets to hear this is not Ibuki.

In this case, it was Ayame. Ayame, who is a bit confused. However she does take note of the idea that someone confessed to her as opposed to her elder sister Ibuki.

Poor Yoichi is feeling down about his teaching skills. For that reason, Ibuki decides to have Ayame teach Washizu. Which then leads into Ayame vs Wakizu. Heh, to be honest I was under the impression that the only sister that did any real training was Ibuki...

A quick moment with Kagome and Chihaya with popsicles once more. There needs to be at least one more episode focused on those two. Or if I had to choose between them, I'd take an episode focused on Chihaya.

Washizu and Torigaya discuss the Ayame situation dealing with the messed up confession. Torigaya makes it clear that he knows Ayame likes Yoichi. And then Wakizu finds out about some festival.

Festival means getting to see our lovely sisters in Yukatas. Yes, I'm including all four because each of them looks nice in her own way. In any case, it seems Washizu is going to employ the "pairs" plan. However only one of the three pairs go as planned.

Ie the pair of Torigaya, Kagome, and Chihaya. Wait, that's a trio. However Washizu is stuck with Ayame, while Ibuki is with Yoichi. Fate must really hate Ayame and Washizu.

Ayame makes the accusation that Washizu fixed the draw and calls him a coward. An accusation that's accurate. Plus logical to make if one stops and thinks about it. I mean having the box already prepared and being that eager.

Ibuki is reminded of her "date" with Yoichi. She wants him to comment on her Yukata, but he's ran off. He also meets up with the masked villain and has casual conversation with the guy. Who actually does take off his mask for a bit. At which point, Ibuki catches up with Yoichi. Oh and the masked villain seems to like Ibuki. Go figure on that one...

The female masked villain is going around offering food samples. Food samples that the trio of Kagome, Chihaya, and Torigaya accept. She removes her mask partially to give us an idea what she looks like.

Angie and Tsubasa make a token appearance. Angie has an interesting outfit on. Tsubasa notices Ibuki and wonders if that means Washizu is around as well. Hence forth, she uses replacement technique and runs off.

Seems like Yoichi got separated from Ibuki yet again. However he runs into the masked girl. Oh, it's time for an eye catch involving Ayame. I highly approve of this one.

Now it's time for what is clearly Washizu fantasizing about quality festival time with Ibuki. However this daydreaming scene gets interrupted by Ayame. Fantasy gets destroyed by reality. In more ways than one.

We get to see the face of the female masked villain more clearly. Yoichi tries at a shooting game, but does miserably at it. He wishes he could have used a sword. Ibuki, appears pointing out the fact it's a "shooting" game. She tries herself and ends up winning a hot spring trick. The way she wins, you can almost guess that the masked villains rigged things.:P

Ayame talks to herself about having dressed up and is angry that things didn't work out the way she wanted. She blames Washizu for this and continues the coward thing. An argument leads to her discovering he meant to confess to Ibuki.

This put Ayame into depression mode and her eyes go blank for a short bit. The two have a conversation about the situation. During which Yoichi appears. Washizu suggests going to him, but then Ibuki appears.

After all a short discussion, Washizu makes a move to grab Ibuki and run off with her. Thus leaving Ayame with Yoichi. Allowing her to spend some time with him. Pretty nice moment between the two.

Washizu stops for a second to discover he's holding the hand of Tsubasa. Tsubasa, who is dressed as some horror figure. Seems like everyone is gathered together to discuss things. Which includes discussing the "Hot Springs" trip and another argument between Ayame and Washizu.

The brother and sister pair aka masked villains get one more moment in the episode before we switch to Angie who is still searching for Tsubasa. In what will be a complete surprise to everyone, the next episode will involve them going to the said "Hot Springs".

This episode was pretty nice over all thanks to plenty of Ayame goodness. Although having a bit more of Chihaya as well would have been nice. In any case, it will be curious to see how they handle the "Hot Springs" episode. Especially since the trip was set up by the "villains".

03-12-2009, 04:18 PM

Argh, this gives me just enough of a glimmer of hope for not ending stupidly that may have to keep watching it. Curse you for your thorough and informative writeup Shi-chan. :P

Suwako Moriya

03-12-2009, 04:40 PM

Argh, this gives me just enough of a glimmer of hope for not ending stupidly that may have to keep watching it. Curse you for your thorough and informative writeup Shi-chan. :P

To be honest even with this episode being good, I'm not expecting anything great from the ending. If anything, it's quite clear the "Masked Siblings" main purpose is so they can create a cut-off point. Right now I'm more focused on the journey for obvious reasons.

Nosredna

03-12-2009, 09:00 PM

Argh, this gives me just enough of a glimmer of hope for not ending stupidly that may have to keep watching it. Curse you for your thorough and informative writeup Shi-chan. :P

I can't imagine it not ending stupidly. Bad sadly I'm going to keep watching (that seems like a familiar phrase.....)

Suwako Moriya

03-13-2009, 02:23 PM

I can't imagine it not ending stupidly.

Perhaps, but they might be able to at least limit the stupid if they do it right.

sadly I'm going to keep watching (that seems like a familiar phrase.....)

I prefer to think of it as a classic phrase. Either way, watching this is a matter of destiny. Either that or it's hard to resist certain characters in the show. Take your pick.

Nosredna

03-13-2009, 09:27 PM

I prefer to think of it as a classic phrase. Either way, watching this is a matter of destiny. Either that or it's hard to resist certain characters in the show. Take your pick.

Ayame is the only reason I keep watching. And the false idea something good is going to happen to her.

Suwako Moriya

03-14-2009, 07:42 PM

Ayame is the only reason I keep watching.

It may be the only reason, but it's a good enough reason. That's how special Ayame truly is.

And the false idea something good is going to happen to her.

The funny part is part of the reason she may be appealing right now is because the odds are stacked against her. So if things work out well for her then it becomes even more rewarding.

Suwako Moriya

03-16-2009, 09:41 PM

It seems the sisters and the samurai have had a long walk to reach the Hot Springs. A walk that Ibuki is fine with, but the other sisters are exhausted by it. Thankfully Yoichi spots the Inn and Ayame comments about it being too big. Cue opening. Now they're greeted by an old lady and they get to look around the place.

Chihaya comments about Ibuki being very lucky lately with the beach trip and now the hot springs. I'm not so sure if I count those as luck... Ayame activates "breast jealously" mode. Yoichi is thinking of looking around outside because the room is boring.

Chihaya talks about the girls going into the bath and asks Yoichi if he wants to come. Yoichi gets nervous. Ayame react. Chihaya states that she didn't mean together. Dual reaction from Ayame and Yoichi. Ibuki realizes that she hasn't gotten angry in awhile and starts pressing him on about what he could be thinking. Yoichi does the smart thing and runs off before anything can happen. Smart move.

Yoichi comments about being surprised by Chihaya-dono. He then wonders about his companions (the animals) and makes it clear to use the audience that he's been with the sisters for about three months. So that means in one month passed for every three episodes so far.

It's a blink and you miss it bath scene. That's just cruel, but if we're lucky a DVD version will make it longer. Watch Chihaya's breasts shake while she's relaxing in a special chair. Watch Kagome have problems with opening a bottle of milk. Watch Ayame and Ibuki play table tennis. Ibuki apparently uses martial arts when playing sports... During the match the two discuss the lack of other guests.

It's Yoichi's turn to take a bath and his scene lasts longer than a second. Probably because he gets into a conversation with Ukyo (Mask Dude). Nice use of the fan... The conversation mainly has to do with Yoichi staying with the Ikarugas and his training. Ukyo then talks about how family helps each other. At which point he accuses Yoichi of only thinking about his own training. He then comments that if he can't help them then he's essentially dead weight...

Ayame is looking at fish in an Aquariam. Some of the fish are quite large. The next moment everyone is eating dinner. Then the old brings up some story about a prison, criminals, and ghosts to explain why there are no other guests. Yoichi offers to take care of the ghosts. After all it's probably fate and he needs something to do. Ibuki offers to go with him.

Chihaya and Ayame discuss this with the latter being in tsundere mode. Ayame suggests that ghosts don't exist. Chihaya suggest that she's scared and should take advantage of that fact. Go for a more direct approach. Ayame then leaves to get juice. There re times I can't tell if Chihaya simply likes messing with Ayame or she actually does support Ayame being with Yoichi. Either way, Chihaya becomes the victim of sleepy mist. A favorite of villains.

Ukyo and the old lady or rather his younger sister Sakon discuss how the plan is going. He thanks her for helping to get closer to being with Ibuki. I think I saw a slight reaction from her. Hmm, subtle hint or blatant hint that she might be jealous? Or maybe I'm reading too much into things.

A rather nice looking Kagome eye patch appears. Yoichi and Ibuki are exploring. The two get separated as they fall through the ground. Yoichi runs into Ayame who got apparently got lost. Yoichi comments that Ayame is different somehow. Yeah, she's definitely acting different and desperate. We can probably put two and two together.

Ibuki recovers and meets up with Ukyo. He asks if Ibuki knows who he is. She apparently has no idea. He then talks about a promise when they were younger. She's still clueless about it. She then comments about looking for a friend. The guy points in the direction of Yoichi and Ayame.

Ibuki figures that the said Ayame must be ghost because her sister would never be like that in public. It seems even that Yoichi can figure out it's not Ayame. After all, Ayame is shy and her breasts aren't that big. Ibuki is both angered and happy in regards to this. You can guess which aspects fall under which.

Tired of the way things are, Ukyo makes his move and decided to kidnap Ibuki. He talks about Ibuki being his fiancee and accuses Yoichi of damaging her memory. Ok, I get the feeling we're missing a piece of the puzzle here. Yoichi is determined to rescue Ibuki and fights whatever Sakon did to him. Ukyo offers him a challenge and to meet them at the Inn.

After a long trek, he makes it back to the Inn. He sees the old lady mask. He searches for the sisters. It's time for the robot master gauntlet! Err I mean one of the earlier assassins to appear again. The one in question being Hinagata. She's cute, but since she's evil... Yoichi complains about Ukyo making his opponent a girl. Ukyo then reveals there are others for him to fight as well. Ie a bunch of generics with only 1 HP each. Yoichi ends up at the aquariam and the sufer idiots are riding sharks. They're the next to get defeated.

Quick scene of the siblings with Ibuki. Now back to Yoichi who finds the sleeping Kagome and Chihaya. He also finds more generics and a boss. Ah, it seems the guy who got lost finally meets with Yoichi. Yoichi is having trouble moving (after effects?) and the guy prepares to finish him.

Finally we get to see the guy show his true power! Never mind, he gets defeated by Ayame. Ok then, I figured that the only sister that had been doing training was Ibuki. Ayame and Yoichi have a pep talk. Yoichi touches her chest and she gets mad. He's happy it's the right size and that Ayame is definitely Ayame. Back to fighting generics.

Ayame goes to Kagome and Chihaya. Yoichi finds Hingata and demands to know where Ibuki is. Yoichi and the other sisters find her. They call to her and she responds with Onii-chan and asks who they are in a childish voice. I take it this means Ukyo reverted her back to a childhood state. During a time she was sure to remember the so called promise.

I think I have a pretty good idea what will happen in the remaining episodes. Although part of it will depend on whether this is 12 or 13 episodes. Personally, if I had my way they'd resolve this sub plot in episode 11 and focus on other things for 12. Possibly 13 if there is one..

ArcticMech

03-17-2009, 01:40 AM

That's as thorough an episode summary as I've seen. :sdsmiley:

Was Washizu and Torigaya not invited or did Wa-san mess up the dates again? Automatic deduction for not including the second-best thing about this show.

Ayame busting out a technique was a fun surprise. More please. It would be kinda funny if that was the last time we saw that mountain warrior. All that buildup for this? Haha.

Yeah, Sakon definitely seems jealous of the attention her brother's been showering on Ibuki. I wonder how much longer she'll continue to faithfully follow her brother's orders.

Suwako Moriya

03-17-2009, 02:49 AM

That's as thorough an episode summary as I've seen

I find when I actually type while watching an episode, my posts tends to be longer. Even more so when rambling on. Granted it also depends on whether I feel like commenting on what happened.

Was Washizu and Torigaya not invited or did Wa-san mess up the dates again?

The two were never really mentioned during the episode, so I would assume that they weren't invited. Since it was a trap maybe they limited to five people.

Ayame busting out a technique was a fun surprise. More please.

I'm actually half-curious if Kagome and Chihaya are capable of anything. Maybe not, but still it would be nice. That being said, there is still both Sakon and Ukyo to defeat.

So maybe they'll pull the "You deal with X, while I fight Y" scenario. X being Sakon and Y being Ukyo. That would give an excuse for Ayame to contribute in some form. While still giving Yoichi the glory since he'd be facing the final boss.

It would be kinda funny if that was the last time we saw that mountain warrior. All that buildup for this? Haha.

Definitely, but don't be so sure. He may be defeated once, but he's capable of being defeated again.:P Actually I'm sure even a child like Kagomecould defeat him.

Yeah, Sakon definitely seems jealous of the attention her brother's been showering on Ibuki. I wonder how much longer she'll continue to faithfully follow her brother's orders.

I'm expecting her to eventually start lashing out at Ibuki and then eventually getting into an argument with Ukyo. That being said, it would be funny if Ukyo was ultimately to blame for Ibuki forgetting about him. Perhaps, all they need is a speech from Washizu the wise.:P

Nosredna

03-17-2009, 07:42 AM

As long as Sakon doesn't fall in love with the Samurai that's fine with me. Although we could use a good yuri pair, maybe her and Ibuki can get together. Best part of the episode was Ayame showing off her technique.

Suwako Moriya

03-17-2009, 11:51 AM

As long as Sakon doesn't fall in love with the Samurai that's fine with me.

I agree, and it would be pointless anyway. I mean she's blatantly jealous of Ibuki because her brother is paying attention to Ibuki more than her. So falling in love with the Samurai would just give her potentially greater competition from Ibuki.

Although we could use a good yuri pair, maybe her and Ibuki can get together.

As interesting as they sound, I'm not sure how that would work. Unless the idea is that she realizes she's not jealous of Ibuki. Rather she's angry that her brother is trying to steal Ibuki from her.

Best part of the episode was Ayame showing off her technique.

It was a definite highlight, and she got to defeat that legendary warrior too. By legendary, I mean pathetic. Now they just need an excuse for her to take action again. Even if it's just underlings.

On a side note, given all the seventh technique, second technique, etc stuff. I wonder if we'll see Yoichi do a technique with a special number. Or maybe call it something like "final" or "original". They could also do a joke where he can't remember the exact number.

Suwako Moriya

03-28-2009, 04:18 AM

Ibuki has regressed back to being four years old. Which is especially bad for Kagome since when Ibuki was four, Kagome wasn't born yet. Oh, four year old Ibuki is essentially a bit of a brat. The sisters and the samurai get to experience this.

As expected the good guys get depressed. The villains use wordplay and lies. The good guys either buy into them because they're gullible or they accept them because they've given up hope.

Kagome gets to be the trigger for the "Let's stop moping, let's stop finding excuses to avoid the problem, and let's actually make an effort to save Ibuki" scene. Who by the way got kidnapped by her so called fiancee.

Ukyo, who apparently likes the idea of Ibuki being four years old. Wait a minute. Does wanting a physically 17 year old girl to have the mental age of a 4 year old count as any form of being a lolicon?

Well, that leaves just one episode left. It would be nice if the ending could involve Ukyo being impaled, but I doubt that will happen.

Suwako Moriya

03-28-2009, 06:11 AM

Let's get the "You stay behind" followed by "No, we're going too", "All right, fine" scene out of the way. Now it's time for a quick scene between the two siblings.

The samurai and sisters run into Sakon. Sakon talks about Ibuki and Ukyo getting married. She and her maids attack. Yoichi defeats them. He then talks to Sakon and tries to convince. Even pointing out the fact she's a younger sister as well and thus should imagine what it would be like if she lost her brother.

She gets angry and points out that she's already lost him. She then runs off after a few more words. Heh, they're making it even clearer now that she's attached to her brother and jealous of Ibuki. Which definitely puts her in a conflicting situation.

Samurai and sisters run into blond dude. Blond dude has an army of generics who all look alike. Ayame and Yoichi fight with swords. Chihaya makes use of her manga stuff. Yoichi makes the idiotic mistake of not paying attention and thus giving the endless army of drones, clones, or whatever the edge.

Who will save the Samurai from his stupid mistake before he's finished by the orders of Sakon? That's right, it's time for Washizu! Oh, and Tsubasa is with him. Confused? Chihaya contacted Torigaya who then told Washizu everything. Which lead to Tsubasa going along with him.

The two join in the fight and Torigaya provides Washizu with his gloves. He also got younger yet again. Oh, and as you can already figure out in addition to Tsubasa, we also have Angie. Who has now arrived. Tsubasa feels a lot stronger when Angie is around. Angie and Tsubasa need to have special training.

Sakon glares. The four sisters share an eye catch. Even in the middle of battle, we get Tsubasa vision. The maids with guns return. The group decides to press foward. Sakon decided to blow up the bridge. Which separates the samurai and sisters from the supporting cast.

Torigaya is captured. Washizu ends up saving him. The supporters continue to fight the clones and such. Angie has nails! Angie decides to strip Tsubasa. Which benefits us the viewer and allows her to be more effective against the enemy.

Apparently being a manga artist allows Chihaya to realize path A is wrong and to go for path B instead. It's nice to know that her time spent working on manga has special benefits.

Time for Ukyo to have a flashback about his time with Ibuki. Time for him to prepare for marriage. Time for him to treat his sister Sakon poorly. Lashing out her for both suggesting they change locations and indicating the samurai and sisters are on their way.

The samurai and sisters have arrived. Ukyo pulls the "I'm more suited for making her (Ibuki) happy than you (Yoichi) speech". Rather than claim he can make Ibuki happy, Yoichi declares that the ones who can make her happy are her sisters. He talks about the importance of family and protecting them.

Yoichi's words seem to have somewhat effected Sakon. Ibuki starts to call her sister's name, but gets in pain around the point she should calling Kagome. Easy to figure out why given episode 11. Ukyo orders Sakon to handle things while he uses the raising platform trick to escape with Ibuki.

Sakon makes the claim that Ibuki will be like that forever, while telling them that they can't pass. The samurai and sisters notice her crying and conclude she realizes Ukyo is wrong as well. Ah, Chihaya gives us manga wisdom. You can never obtain happiness by lying. Manga wisdom is fun.

Sakon lets them pass. Yoichi tells the sisters to take the stairs. While he starts to climb up the moving platform. The samurai is a monkey! Yoichi catches up with Ukyo on a roof top and starts to lecture him. Time for the epic and long drawn out final battle.

Or maybe not. Apparently Ukyo is your classic 1HP villain. Ibuki starts to recover as the sisters catch up. Ibuki falls off the roof . Her sisters chase after her. Ukyo tries to as well, but his sister prevents him from doing so by grabbing his leg. She's not letting him go. Yoichi goes after Ibuki as well.

Yoichi pulls one of those "make the fall less dangerous moves". The supporters notice this and conclude he was successful. Oh apparently in spite of still being stripped down, Tsubasa is back in normal mode. Go figure on that one.

The sisters and the samurai are in the water. Yoichi can't swim. He hangs on to Ibuki's chest for dear life. Big mistake, but it confirms that she's back to normal.

Yoichi sends a letter to his father essentially saying "I haven't trained enough. I'm staying with the sister." He also talks about some culture festival. I guess if there's ever a second second season, they might focus an episode on it.

During this, we get to scenes of the cast. Ukyo is resting on Sakon's lap while looking at a picture of Ibuki. Washizu activates Washizu? vision and we get a female version of Torigaya? Torigaya's character is just wrong.

The ending credits have it so instead of Yoichi, we get Ibuki doing the sitting and watching. So I guess it's somewhat different, but not exactly by much. Either way, I may as well mention it.

Asu no Yoichi has the type of ending that in the grand scheme of things is really nothing special. In other words, you're not going to get one of those amazing endings or anything like that.

However in the context of the type of series that Asu no Yoichi is meant to be the ending isn't that bad. Not to say it's great, I guess ok for its type of series is the best way to put it. Also the ending is akin to a cut-off point and mainly used to resolved the plot with the siblings.

Over all Asu no Yoichi is classic case of the following. A series that could have been a lot better, but also could have been a lot worse. I found things to like about such as Tsubasa, Ayame, and I guess in some Sakon near the end. Well, she is hot and I did start to feel for her.

However the series also had issues like with the assassin stuff and sometimes Ibuki could be frustrating. Oh, and there needed to be more Tsubasa. Then again having enough of her is impossible.

ArcticMech

03-28-2009, 08:43 AM

As expected the good guys get depressed. The villains use wordplay and lies. The good guys either buy into them because they're gullible or they accept them because they've given up hope.

For some reason the ease at which the sisters and samurai bought into the bribes and lies bothered me to no end. It just came across unconvincingly.

Ukyo, who apparently likes the idea of Ibuki being fours old. Wait a minute. Does wanting a physically 17 year old girl to have the mental age of a 4 year old count as any form of being a lolicon?

Ukyo is pretty disgusting. I was thinking something similar. Does this make him a pedo? Yes, in my book.

Suwako Moriya

03-28-2009, 08:56 AM

For some reason the ease at which the sisters and samurai bought into the bribes and lies bothered me to no end. It just came across unconvincingly.

To be honest, it bothered me as well. Regardless of the reasoning that may or may not be behind their actions.

Ukyo is pretty disgusting. I was thinking something similar. Does this make him a pedo? Yes, in my book.

Disgusting isn't a strong enough word for him.

ArcticMech

03-28-2009, 02:54 PM

Yoichi makes the idiotic mistake of not paying attention and thus giving the endless army of drones, clones, or whatever the edge.

Who will save the Samurai from his stupid mistake before he's finished by the orders of Sakon? That's right, it's time for Washizu!

This part was particularly annoying. How could someone who so easily wiped out a bunch of gun-toting maids be taken down by a single hit? You'd think he'd at least be able to take out a few of those henchmen. Washizu made a grand entrance. Knocking out the guy who had earlier stunned him was satisfying. Washizu, and Tsubasa for that matter, has really elevated this show and made it fun to watch for the most part.

The two join in the fight and Torigaya provides Washizu with his gloves. He also got younger yet again.

So Washizu wasn't imaging all this time as Torigaya is a Japanese Benjamin Button. If they ever decide to continue this anime, it would be nice to explore why this is the case and to see whether Torigaya will eventually disappear.

Rather than claim he can make Ibuki happy, Yoichi declares that the ones who can make her happy are her sisters. He talks about the importance of family and protecting them.

I was actually impressed that they went this route with him. Having him confess his feelings or something like that would've been out of left field. This reasoning is sound and consistent with his ideals/views.

Ibuki falls off the roof. Her sisters chase after her....Yoichi goes after Ibuki as well....Yoichi pulls one of those "make the fall less dangerous moves".

The sisters and the samurai are in the water. Yoichi can't swim. He hangs on to Ibuki's chest for dear life. Big mistake, but it confirms that she's back to normal.

Having the sisters and Samurai skydive was a lot of fun. Can't really fault drowning Samurai for doing what he did. Seeing him so overjoyed over having Ibuki back to normal as he was flying through the air was funny.

Washizu activates Washizu? vision and we get a female version of Torigaya? Torigaya's character is just wrong.

Disturbing. Deeply disturbing. Washizu vision (and Tsubasa vision) had been so much fun to watch too. Why?!

Over all Asu no Yoichi is classic case of the following. A series that could have been a lot better, but also could have been a lot worse. I found things to like about such as Tsubasa, Ayame, and I guess in some Sakon near the end. Well, she is hot and I did start to feel for her.

I think I got about what I expected out of this series. Rather unremarkable with lots of room for improvement, but was fun to follow. If they ever do another season, I'd probably watch it.

Having his father use his letter as a snot rag was a funny way to end it. Nice touch?

Yes, there's lots to like about Tsubasa and Ayame. Can't say I liked how Sakon acted (too close to her brother and complied with his stupidity for too long), but purely in terms of character design, she probably edges out Ayame. (Yes, there's much hesitation in that last statement).

Nosredna

03-29-2009, 12:02 AM

Over all Asu no Yoichi is classic case of the following. A series that could have been a lot better, but also could have been a lot worse. I found things to like about such as Tsubasa, Ayame, and I guess in some Sakon near the end. Well, she is hot and I did start to feel for her.

I agree, it wasn't the best series, but it wasn't the worst. To me it was just another average run-of-the-mill harems. Ayame saved the series for me, so if they plan on doing another season, they'd better feature Ayame more, although I suspect that won't happen.

Suwako Moriya

03-29-2009, 03:26 AM

If they ever decide to continue this anime, it would be nice to explore why this is the case and to see whether Torigaya will eventually disappear.

This I can definitely agree with. Even if it's meant mainly to be a joke, sooner or later they're going to have to either stop making him younger or address the issue.

Disturbing. Deeply disturbing. Washizu vision (and Tsubasa vision) had been so much fun to watch too. Why?!

Perhaps they had a secret desire to scar us mentally. Either way it seems kind odd that such a Washizu vision would even exist.

Yes, there's lots to like about Tsubasa and Ayame. Can't say I liked how Sakon acted (too close to her brother and complied with his stupidity for too long), but purely in terms of character design, she probably edges out Ayame. (Yes, there's much hesitation in that last statement).

Sakon's actions over all were indeed frustrating. Still hopefully now that the issue is resolved, she'll be less frustrating in the future. Then again even if the show gets another season, it's hard to say if she'll get any screen time. After all she and her brothers were essentially seasonal antagonists. Which sometimes return the next season and other times simply fade into none-existence.

Suwako Moriya

03-29-2009, 03:28 AM

Ayame saved the series for me, so if they plan on doing another season, they'd better feature Ayame more, although I suspect that won't happen.

The more focus Ayame gets the better. Actually compared to both Chihaya and Kagome, Ayame actually got a decent amount of focus. Still I'm sure Ayame will get at least some focus in a future season if there is one.

Nosredna

03-29-2009, 09:41 AM

The more focus Ayame gets the better. Actually compared to both Chihaya and Kagome, Ayame actually got a decent amount of focus. Still I'm sure Ayame will get at least some focus in a future season if there is one.

Good point, I think Chihaya and Kagome really only got one episode each, but maybe I'm just thinking there was too much Ibuki. I wouldn't mind if those two had more in the story as well, without forgetting about Ayame of course.

Suwako Moriya

03-29-2009, 09:53 AM

Good point, I think Chihaya and Kagome really only got one episode each, but maybe I'm just thinking there was too much Ibuki. I wouldn't mind if those two had more in the story as well, without forgetting about Ayame of course.

Personally I wouldn't mind having Ibuki's screen time reduced in order to give more time to Chihaya and Kagome. Not that I'd want Ibuki to have no time, but well they do have to make it up to the younger sisters.

03-30-2009, 12:10 AM

I actually went and finished this series. I'm a little angry at myself for wasting that time too. I can't really say it was terrible in any particular way, though much of the writing felt below average even for this kind of a show. It just left a bad taste in my mouth, probably because we had two of the most amazing series I've ever seen (one of them was THE most amazing series I've ever seen) this season and it's really helped me to realize how emtpy these shallow eye candy shows have become for me. I always seem to get sucked in because there is one character who pushes my moe button. This time it was Tsubasa, but starting next season I intend to try harder to resist watching for that reason alone. It really doesn't feel worth it anymore and I have hundreds upon hundreds of DVDs containing quality anime I could spend time on instead.

HitokiriShadow

03-30-2009, 12:31 AM

I considered continuing because of Ayame and Chihaya, but I decided it just wasn't worth it. I've been glancing at the thread here and there, and everything I read just confirms I made the right decision to drop it when I did. It sounds like the two characters I liked got their time in the spotlight in the beginning and were then stuck as support characters for the rest of the series, while lousy characters and dumb storylines took center stage. Also, mental regression is a big pet peeve for me, even if its for a character I don't like.

Suwako Moriya

03-30-2009, 01:10 AM

It just left a bad taste in my mouth, probably because we had two of the most amazing series I've ever seen (one of them was THE most amazing series I've ever seen) this season and it's really helped me to realize how emtpy these shallow eye candy shows have become for me.

Just curious, but is your statement only taking into account shows that actually started during Winter? Or does it include shows that were running during Winter, but may have started in say Autumn?

Going by the latter, I've finished Casshern Sins, Toradora, Clannad ~After Story~, Marimite S4, and Minami-ke Okaeri. In addition to Asu no Yoichi of course. Out of all those series Asu no Yoichi may be potentially the weakest.

I always seem to get sucked in because there is one character who pushes my moe button.

I'm not sure if moe button is always the right term, but the sad truth for me is this. Regardless of the level of quality of a show, it's often becoming attached to one or more characters that convinces me to keep trying a show.

Granted whether or not, it's enough to make me stick with the entire series is another story. Take for example, To Love Ru. Given enough time, I could have found at least one or two females to like. However I decided it wasn't worth watching a show that desperately wanted to be bad.

Like wise for a more recent season example, while certain girls in White Album had potential to be awesome it wasn't worth suffering through the show ruining character Touya. As well as the fact the show became frustrating in general.

Even so in many cases it pays off. The love for the said character gives me the motivation needed to give the series in question a chance to become good. Figure it this way, I wouldn't have been watching three seasons of Minami-ke if I hated the entire cast.

This time it was Tsubasa, but starting next season I intend to try harder to resist watching for that reason alone.

In my case, I was more effected by Ayame. This is not say Tsubasa wasn't a factor, but I figured her screen time would be more limited. That being said, I look at this way.

There's a huge difference between a character convincing me that it's worth giving a show a serious chance vs convincing me that it's worth going all the way with a show. In the end, I'm probably go to take it on a case by case basis.

It really doesn't feel worth it anymore and I have hundreds upon hundreds of DVDs containing quality anime I could spend time on instead.

I do have a bit of a DVD backlog, but most (if not all) of it is made up of shows I already saw in a different form. So my concern about the DVD backlog isn't really that high in the long run.

That being said, even if I only take into account more recent series that still leaves me with multiple series to choose from. Thus finding ways to trim down my list is a good idea. Granted the hard part is deciding what to trim sometimes. I want the decision to drop to be carefully made.

Actually looking at my notepad that keeps track of what I'm watching, it couldn't hurt for me to start dumping multiple series. However that's probably a story for another thread, I suppose.

Suwako Moriya

03-30-2009, 01:22 AM

I considered continuing because of Ayame and Chihaya, but I decided it just wasn't worth it.

In the case of Ayame, she was at least able to get some decent moments through out the series. Not that they amounted to due to what the plot was focused on. Then again it would be the first case of plot murdering potential.

In the case of Chihaya, your statement is the complete and utter truth. Seriously, they essentially reduced her to a "just there" role with her being allowed to occasionally remind us she exists.

Honestly, the most major flaw of the series if anything is the balance of the characters due to time management. Episodes wasted on random assassins should have been used instead for the sake of character focused episodes.

ArcticMech

03-30-2009, 01:27 AM

Honestly, the most major flaw of the series if anything is the balance of the characters due to time management. Episodes wasted on random assassins should have been used instead for the sake of character focused episodes.

Ugh, don't remind me about the surfing assassins x 2.

Anyways, despite its many flaws I still had fun watching for the most part and, as I said earlier, I'd probably give it a try should they put out more in the future.

Fencedude

03-30-2009, 01:29 AM

Honestly, the most major flaw of the series if anything is the balance of the characters due to time management. Episodes wasted on random assassins should have been used instead for the sake of character focused episodes.

Ugh, don't remind me about the surfing assassins x 2.

That episode is the last one I watched. Between those two and the ungodly stupid bit about Kagome, I just lost all desire to keep watching.

Suwako Moriya

03-30-2009, 02:02 AM

Anyways, despite its many flaws I still had fun watching for the most part and, as I said earlier, I'd probably give it a try should they put out more in the future.

To be honest, the more I think about it the more I'm mixed on whether or not to watch another season of this. On the positive side the series had some fun moments. On the negative side it was filled with some rather poor handling. I guess I could always go with the following mindset. I took care of testing the first season. Hence forth someone else can be the one to test out the mythical second season.

Suwako Moriya

03-30-2009, 02:22 AM

Between those two and the ungodly stupid bit about Kagome, I just lost all desire to keep watching.

That bit with Kagome was not only creepy, but also essentially pointless to even bother introducing in the first place. It's like they only really brought up the issue just so they could say "Look we have an endowed loli!" or whatever.

03-30-2009, 11:00 AM

Just curious, but is your statement only taking into account shows that actually started during Winter? Or does it include shows that were running during Winter, but may have started in say Autumn?

Anything that was airing alongside it, so both winter and continuing fall shows. In any other season Asu would have passed as mediocre (within its genre, judged against anime in general it is still terrible), but it felt worse than that given the competition. I think my new rule is going to be to drop a show the first time I roll my eyes while watching it. In this case that would've happened in episode 1.

I did get a chuckle out of the final scene with Yoichi's dad. It was just terrible, a suitable ending for such a show.

Suwako Moriya

03-30-2009, 01:13 PM

In any other season Asu would have passed as mediocre (within its genre, judged against anime in general it is still terrible), but it felt worse than that given the competition.

To be honest even if X is better than Y, I'm not sure if I'm going to lower my opinion on Y just for that reason. Then again if one has enough X titles in a season to watch, it becomes a good idea to cut things out. The best thing to cut out is the lesser Y titles.

I think my new rule is going to be to drop a show the first time I roll my eyes while watching it. In this case that would've happened in episode 1.

Honestly, I don't plan to have any hard or fast rules like that. I've learned from experience that shows with a weak start can improve greatly. Then again there is the other side of the coin. Shows that start off strong, but end up going downhill.

Rather than rely on any set rules, I tend to go based on feeling. Both in order to decide what's worth sticking with and what to ultimately give up on. That being said, I have been trying to give more thought in terms of my decisions in both regards.

I've dropped series that in the past I would have kept watching just because it existed. Granted my reasons for dropping each series tend to vary, but I have noticed that it often boils down to one or more of the following factors.

The pattern the show develops tells me the series is not for me. Certain aspects of the series become too frustrating. It becomes clear the show wants to bad. So on and so forth.

I guess I'm kind of mixed. I've experienced shows that I wish I had dropped earlier. Such as To Love Ru, I should have dropped it long before episode 12. I was suckered in by the cute girls, but over time realized the show was more interested in being bad than making proper use of its cast. Plus the female lead bothers me a bit.

However I've also experienced shows where I'm glad I gave them a serious chance. Such as Shikabane Hime. The first episode was boring and my opinion on it was negative. Yet, two episodes away from completing the series and my opinion has become positive. Still the last two episodes can make or break the show completely.

Hence why for me it's going to be more of a judgment call. One that is always going to be a gamble. Sometimes I'll miss out on a winner and other times I'll waste my time with a loser. Then again sometimes I'll end up lucking out.

Granted this is part of the reason I do sometimes read episode by episode discussion threads even if I'm not watching a series. I'll sometimes use the comments as a gauge to decide whether or not it's worth continuing with the series in question.

Although it sounds like others do the same. Ie take advantage of those of us who finished Asu no Yoichi to determine whether or not they themselves should spend time with it. Some have obviously decided it's not worth wasting time with the series.