Daijoubu

Recently I’ve been checking out shows like Claymore, Dennou Coil and School Days, as well as stuff I’ve been following all along like Lucky Star and, more recently, Higurashi Kai. I’ve even been getting back to stuff I never finished, like (can you believe it ^_^;;) Kanon. When you go from an episode of Lucky Star to an episode of School Days, and then from Claymore to HiguKai, you realize the variety of offerings there can be in a good season of anime. A solid season has a mix of genres, new vs. returning series, and the traditional next to the innovative. I do think that this Spring/Summer have been good, although some bloggers and other fans like to complain about a lack of good or original material or the amount of fanservice or other elements that they, as purists for their favorite genres, don’t like.

I think a key to not burning out on anime, though, is to keep your palette of shows a mixed as possible. Different episodes can then create contrasting moods for the viewer, based on how they are juxtapositioned. So, when the burning hatred engendered by Makoto and Sekai’s antics in an episode of School Days induces a stabby mood that makes you long for a bad ending, a quick turn to Lucky Star, with Konata, Kagamin, Tsukasa and Miyuki’s endearing moe qualities, can bring a much needed antidote in the form of slice-of-life relaxation (with a large dose of otaku-pandering references) And when the vapidity of Umisho or Zero no Tsukaima’s fanservice excesses have numbed your mind to the point of oblivion, Dennou Coil can come to the rescue, with its cleverly imagined universe, inhabited by interesting characters and intelligent concepts.

And then there are shows like Mononoke, which has a different look than anything else. The variety of visual styles in the anime I’ve mentioned so far should be more than enough to silence those who think all anime looks the same (big eyes and all that). Of course, if you are playing catch-up, and a show like Claymore gets you hooked, then the urge to marathon something so owningly awesome can push thoughts of other series temporarily aside!