http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/8232/winterv3.jpg (http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/8232/winterv3.jpg/)

It looks like chartfag won't be doing these charts anymore so this chart is (and possibly, subsequent charts also will be) provided by CartDriver (http://thecartdriver.com/charts/)

New Chart, the picture doesn't provide a thumbnail and it's ridiculously big. (http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/8237/neregatecomwinter2011an.jpg)
I found a different source that I think is much better than CartDriver. The website can be found at Neregate.com (http://neregate.com/blog/). They also do a flash version of the charts if you'd like to have those instead.

As always, the list for sub groups who are picking up shows for the Winter Season can be found here (http://www.fansubwiki.com/Who_Subs_What:_WINTER_2010)
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Doesn't look like there are a lot this Winter...for now at least.
Despite that, KIMI NI TODOKE SECOND SEASON! WAAAAAAAA

It's a tad early to note down which ones I'll be following, but most of the shows on this list seems to be interesting. I also heard that Baka Test 2 is coming out this season but the chart doesn't seem to have it...

Oh well, I'll keep updating, checking out if and when an updated list comes out. Enjoy

Infinite Stratos and Gosick looks interesting to watch.

Fractale seems to be the one that's trying to be the mindfuck of the season, but it looks like it's absorbed the moeblob sickness from the last year of shit-anime. So, like the Sora no Woto anime, it may turn out to have this awesome backstory, but completely detached from it with the main story. It'll be interesting to see how it turns out.

Gosick is pretty awesome from what previews of the novel I've read. I'm planning on following it this winter. Sort of a spinoff of the Detective Conan storyline, while taking in elements of Spiral.

Similarly, Beelzebub is also good from what I've heard from the manga. It's a constant drive of a bad person teaming up with an unbelievably powerful person and the results of their antics. An anime that followed this same premise was Code Geass (although this one doesn't seem to compare to that series).

I'm kinda curious about Dragon Crisis, as it sounds like they're pulling some stuff from Breath of Fire with the summary containing dragon clans and all. It may turn out to be more epic than the summary denotes.

Infinite Stratos seems like a Duel - Parallel Trouble! clone. Let's just hope that they don't screw it up like the hundred or so other Evangelion parodies.

Craft-Sensei may be awesome if they managed to do H.P. Lovecraft right (like how Studio Deen did Demonbane). I can also see this being a huge laugh, as most doppleganger anime tend to trend that way.



This is a much better lineup this season in comparison to the last three. Anime just may be getting back on track with storylines and dejecting the whole "everything must be either moe or ero" they've done for the past year.

And I have to say, I'm quite depressed that Shakuragan no Shana III is not on the list. Way back when they started Shana S, they said that this was the target season for its release and there's been no mention of them producing anything. They still have at least a single cour left of the anime covering the Reigi Maigo arc; SO PRODUCE DAMN IT!

Another classic that's been left out is Zero no Tsukaima IV. While I don't particularly care about the series, the story was still fascinating to follow.

I agree with you. I wonder where the heaven Shakugan no Shana III is going to be released out. Come on... They've already kept us waiting for a while! :angry:

lol, I feel like such a n00b for only finishing Shakugan no Shana (1st, 2nd and S) recently even though I started watching it when it first came out. Then for some reason, I stopped at ep 20 in the first season, only to pick it up and finish it a couple of years later XD

Yeah, JC staff seems to be producing random stuff these days. At least they're on a roll with Index.

Not too excited about the preview; hopefully there's more to come. Where's Kyoani and Shaft?

Most likely collecting their pennies before they go bankrupt. They've been having a lot of marketing problems recently, contrary to the popularity of Bakemonogatari and K-On.

Or they could just be biding their time and not releasing what they're going to do, kinda like the recent Haruhi drama.

I think it's the latter and a little bit of the former. The Disappearance of Suzumiya Haruhi DVD/BD comes out in November so they'll be raking in a huge cashflow soon.

Huh. I wonder.

Anyway, amazing how they made Wolverine as an anime... First Iron Man, then Wolverine... What's next? The Hulk???

They're actually doing the TV Show Supernatural as an anime series too...

Goodness gracious... So they're basically taking some of the shows that America is showing and making them into anime?

Moeblob obviously isn't working... Neither is sex... Next step: AMERICA!

Hollywood did that too, remaking asian films due to the writers' strike if I remember correctly (most of them bombed though)

Moeblob obviously isn't working... Neither is sex... Next step: AMERICA!

Oh god no......... (not to be melodramatic or anything).

What's that that I hear in the distance? Companies should be focussing on what?.........o.....ol....old sch.........old school.......and something else.......sto...r...line....story line?

Well, at least there's some on this list that I'm considering watching this time. Fractale might be alright but I think I'm biased towards the name, and Gosick seems like it might be alright by its classic synopsis.

will have to have a look at Beezlebub! Plenty of suggestions to save me from going insane from too much maths now I finished watching the melancholy of haruhi suzumiya.

Gosick and Fractale seem ok, nothing particularly interesting though.

And actually, I thought moeblob is still working quite well?

Hah, I read/posted about Fractale some time ago. The story seems pretty interwoven with the main plot, and it seems to have some element of 'realism' to it. Fractale's actually the real world, with the only thing non-real-worldy about it being the avatars, but otherwise...

Beelzebub is must-watch too, I guess.

Finally, laughing at the summary for Merry Dream Eater: 'One day a girl falls on top of him.' He should've made that the only thing in the summary :V

I found a different source that I think is much better than CartDriver. The website can be found at Neregate.com (http://neregate.com/blog/). They also do a flash version of the charts if you'd like to have those instead.

CartDriver chart has been updated and replaced

Yumekui Merry (Preview)
Well that was rather interesting. It's been since Yume Tsukai since I've seen an anime that's focused on dreams, and this one seems to take a different route. The plot appears to be about a girl that existed in a dream world and was somehow removed from that world and brought to reality. Similarly, the protagonist is something supernatural as well, as he can predict the dreams which someone will have by looking at them, and he also has the power to bring about reality from his dreams. This is a very surreal and serene plot that seeps with originality. Considering all of that along with some Soul Eater like fight scenes, this anime appears to be worth your time. The only element I'm worried about at this point is the characer's personalities, as they all seem slightly flat. Also, the picopop ending (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2769Qxi1qA) is awesome.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Preview)
Shaft's at it again, though this time, they're working on the different end of the spectrum. Puella Magi Madoka Magica (PM3) is a magical girl anime; the first in a long time that may be worth watching. The art is very familiar to those that watched Bakemonogatari, with the hyperintrinsic still shots that are laced with the animation. Along with this is a clashing theme of wide-faces. Similar to Hidamari Sketch's characters were drawn. And at the same time of all of this, the show opens up extremely dark (unless you count Tsubasa Chronicle, but I wouldn't call that overtly dark). This is beyond refreshing for the magical girl anime genera. In fact, I can't even think of a magical girl anime that is intensionally dark. That is, if it actually maintained that image. Shaft kept flicking the light switch on and off (literally, rooms that are very white and blue suddenly turn very red and black) throughout the first episode, changing the theme from lighthearted to dark and sinister. It left me slightly confused as to where it was going to go.

None-the-less, the turn the story is progressing towards is still done nicely. The family interactions and character personalities are top class. I think that this anime will become the next Lyrical Nanoha and a contender to the classic Cardcaptor Sakura. While it runs to be understood by children, the story is heavily mature minded. This is another one worthy to be followed this season. In fact, it may be the best, as it stands right now.


Infinite Stratos -IS- (Preview)
Battle anime with harem. I wish I didn't have to write the word Harem so much, but it's quickly becoming the must-have of all anime being produced. This one is more focused on the harem elements than the battle elements, so prepare yourself for more moè than battle scenes. In addition, they pull the classic one-boy all-girl school card, which almost dictates erotic situations to occur (obligatory walk-in of room, bathhouse, going into a female's toilet, and all the excessive shock of the guy simply *being* at the school). To counter what I said earlier, this story is a farcry from Duel! -Parallel Trouble Adventures- as it doesn't even attempt to establish a complex story. It's just a guy in an all girls school whom can do what other guys cannot. Generic. At least it's an improvement to Strike Witches. Not so sure about watching this one this season. I'll be following it not for the quality or the story, but for the technophile in me which likes just about any form of heavy industry, and the hopes that this anime will bloom into that pod.



To preview:
Craft-sensei
Dragon Crisis
Fractle
Gosick

Just watched the first episode of Puella Magi Madoka Magica. And it's exactly like M says, a dark show in general and especially dark for a magical girl series. This isn't a one of thing either, the dark theme plays out through the episode. The art style is also very intriguing, combining what M said about Bakemonogatari, however even the characters rather than having a seamless clean animation like in Bakemonogatari, they'e somewhat sketchy and in a "colouring pencil" style. This makes for a truly interesting presentation. The music is one of the other things that stood out; this anime really does have a fabulous soundtrack. The music really sets the feel and atmosphere while in itself being very creative and out of the ordinary. Its too soon to judge the characters though, so I'll leave that to later.


All up, I must say I really like this show so far and I hope it continues like this.



Freezing. Now, this is your generic over exaggerated ero-violence thing. The lead female character spends half the fights half naked and half the non-fighting scenes half naked as well, and there's a fair bit of convenient clothing shedding. The characters aren't very likable since pretty much everyone has some sort of issue that tends to overwrite their personality. This could have been played out well, but it didn't. This seems to be leading into just an ero-gore fest. The storyline is presented and executed fairly ordinarily as well, it may go somewhere, or it might not. There is a lot of questions about the story at this point, with the show being sci-fi it gives the usual mass details without explaining anything, most likely things will be looked at more in later episodes. But this isn't really a show I'm going to keep watching just to see if the story proves to be great. Even then I'm sure the story is just going to be interludes between all the gore and nudity. The show does have a bit of a Claymore feel about it; but of course this has much more "fan service".

This isn't something I'd recommend or like, but those who enjoyed the ero-violence of High School of the Dead, or perhaps some Claymore fans that are more into fan service may want to check it out.

Just waiting on watching Gosick, Fractale and Yumekui Merry.

I may also pick a few others at random to give them a go.

Gosick (Preview)
This anime was slighly charming and slightly misleading. It's apparent that it will be heavily story driven, as the first episode covered more than what was ever covered in K-On. Victorisque is a girl locked in a cage called books and possesses the talent of connecting chaos using a skill she calls her "Fountain of Wisdom". Sadly, the first episode, while it said a lot about the anime, it doesn't clearly define anything about the anime itself. In fact, the first episode cut off midpoint of its introduction; which likely means this anime will end every episode on a cliffhanger like the anime of long ago. As predicted, it looks like this anime will fit the detective conan-like structure of a private investigator working through a greater genius.

Dragon Crisis (Preview)
Dragons, Lost Precious, and Secret Societies, oh my. This anime came from right field when I finally turned it on, including the random "Holy crap, is that Taiga from Toradora?" moment I get every time the girl speaks. That said and gone, the third thing I noticed about this anime is the music. It's 100% lead synths and drums. Talk about distractions galore.

All in all, though, this looks like it's going to be something similar to Chobits: Guy runs across a girl that knows nothing other than "He, as my master, is everything to me". Similar to Gosick, this anime appears to have much more to it outside of the first episode, so my grade will have to wait.


Kore wa Zombie Desu ka (Preview)

=_=

This one tries to be funny, and fails miserably. It's kinda like how people thought Mugi in K-On was funny for occasionally being dimwitted. The first five minutes lightly reminiscent of Cross Channel's classic flash game Nanaka Crash (http://megami.starcreator.com/nanaca-crash/), this anime opens with a zombie living a normal life, seeking out those responsible for his death. Hold this thought. Let's enumerate thing's shall we? Zombie, Magical Girl (actually, Necromancer, with the added benefit of being mute), a Fangirl with a Chainsaw whom is also a magical girl, a Sword Girl, Monsters/Ghouls, Blood, senseless violence, and random erotic sequences, including male crossdressing. If you're on the same wavelength as me, you're probability thinking that the writers thought that they can throw all the good things of anime into a bag without planning and call it a new anime.... BUT! This is a similar equation to High School of the Dead, and there are quite a few anime fans that liked that series. Most likely, those that like HSotD, will like Are you a Zombie.

Animation's clean, music's not annoying, and there does seem to be some sort of plot being established throughout the episode. While I'm not fond of this anime, I'm certain someone else will be.

Hourou Musuko.

Basic synopsis, about 2 middle-school students who are both transgendered. A girl wanting to be a boy and a boy wanting to be a girl. At first I thought it would take an ecchi/eroge direction but I was gladly proved wrong. The show carries a brilliant message and story; one that is very meaningful and relevant to the people of today. The art is very nice, the music is fair but at least it doesn't overpower anything. The show has a great atmosphere and really carries feeling well. I'm biased towards this story because I can relate, but this is an anime with a meaning, and one you can definitely learn something from.

I'd highly recommend this to anyone and personally can't wait for the next episode. My favourite of the season so far.

Rio - Rainbow Gate!

Oh god what did I just watch? Gambling, sexy female characters, slice of life... It made me happy.

May watch another episode.

Episode 2 of Gosick turned out to be great. :) I'm beginning to really love this series; it has that old mystery charm to it. The show ended on another cliff hanger though........gar! So much suspense.

Wandering Son (Preview)
This is an odd anime. Not because of the fact that it takes the role of two high school students that experence gender dysphoria (https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Gender_identity_disorder), but because that it portrays each characters with such an effusion of emotion that it gives off a genuine feeling that you don't normally see in any form of media. It feels like an actual memoir. At the same time, this topic is one that can strike the heart of those whom lived their childhood in which the were outcast by the gender they associated with and were desperately looking to be accepted somewhere. While the topic is one of the taboos of general society, and a betrayal of physical characteristics, I also feel that the message this anime possesses with make it something to remember for a long time; as similar to Koi Kaze (http://www.anidb.net/a1675) did to incest, and Kodomo no Jikan (http://www.anidb.net/a5029) did to paedophilia, I would say Wandering Son will do for GIDC (https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Gender_identity_disorder_in_children). But don't let those names scare you away from this anime. Wandering Son is very pure, and very distant from sexual topics; with the most extreme moment as of writing was a same-sex confession given by letter, and cross dressing.

The art for the anime is very dreamlike; covered in a heavy haze and lots of pastel colors. It's almost like the animation studio wanted to give the impression that the anime was based off of a memory. It does air a bit of the cheap-looking side, but the minimalistic style adds an artistic side to the anime, like Aoi Hana did last year.

The music, while the OP and ED are quite nice, was generally forgettable, but it was not distracting; thus I'd say it was well suited for the story.

While this anime isn't for everyone, as the subject's premise may overturn some viewer's stomach, I'd highly recommend this anime for anyone with an open mind.

Hopefully I am not resurrecting something that should just be left in it's place, but I find it funny that we post the list and talk about previews but not any of the shows themselves, since the series are getting more of a move on.

Referring to GOSICK; possible spoilers?


I haven't seen any of the other anime on the list, however, I've been watching GOSICK the last few weeks. It's definitely entertaining to watch. I wasn't too sure if I was going to like it; it seemed like it was going to be a cutesy drawn young-persons love story kind of feel, but that (thankfully) isn't the whole plot-line at all. I noticed M mentioned Detective Conan when referring to GOSICK; I've never seen the series in it's entirety, but I remember seeing quite a few episodes back in the day, and I have to say, the detective part of the story is extremely similar to it, however, I like the way they present the whole anonymous detective side of things.

The ghost stories are quite an awesome thing put into the series. I get quite sick of series which have a "skeptic" vibe to them, and it turns out that real magic is involved after all, but it's the exact opposite here. Stuff like this is great for the time-period setting, even if it is in a fake European country. xD

As I mentioned before, I'm glad this isn't just a love story. It's actually told in a really well-done way, I think. OF COURSE you know how it'll end up, however, the tension is good, and the characterization stays true.