Sometimes, being too selective has its disadvantages. For somebody like me who likes my shows a bit serious, without moe or harems or ecchi etc if possible, the tipping point was the weight of real-life worries. Not only did I not like to watch sad shows that would make my mood even sink further, I wanted to seek out lighter shows from my usual fare. My pickiness probably borders on elitist sometimes but this time, I was willing to take off the pet peeve goggles for a while. I do not know if this seems like lowering of standards, or if this is just me looking for something more positive from what I usually watch. I might be thinking too much these days, I’m afraid.
So where did I find material? The shows that I normally ignored from the previous seasons, those shows which I dropped or dismissed as fluff, provided some watchable finds. What were these shows? Read on.
- El Cazador de la Bruja
I remember dropping this when L.A. appeared. But when I finished Noir sometime in the earlier part of this year, I wanted to watch another series with guns. I managed to finish El Cazador de la Bruja, although indeed I was correct in my earlier assumption that this show was inferior.
- Dance in the Vampire Bund
Loli vampire? Hmm, I don’t know how but I forgot to check on this. Was I right in ignoring this show? I should have watched at least 2 episodes. Somehow I survived Kurozuka, Vampire Knight (and Twilight lol), so this was bound to be OK. And so it was, complete with several surprises. A must watch for those who like vampire stories.
- Bamboo Blade
For my original take on the show, click here. Well, Bamboo Blade was a victim of that awesome year of 2007 where there were just too many shows to watch. (And I did check out a lot of shows. Click here for the list.) I think I stopped at episode one, and I totally failed to see the awesomeness and most importantly, the cuteness of Tama-chan. Another favorite character was Miyako-san, aka Miya-miya. I just love that evil look of hers! 😀
- To Aru Kagaku no Railgun
I had checked out the original show, To Aru Majutsu no Index, and I did say I didn’t like Index, but I hated Touma too. But Railgun turned out to be a fun watch. Touma does appear sometimes, but it didn’t bother me anymore because he was no longer the focus of the show. Of course my favorite character is the Railgun herself, Misaka Mikoto. It is just fun to watch the adventures in Railgun. The presence of annoying character/s was not enough to derail my enjoyment of the show.
- K-On!
And here comes the main event! OMG I managed to watch K-On!!!! That show whose kindred I avoid like the plague! And I was OK with it! Sure there’s not anything monumental happening but the show has managed to make me feel relaxed (read: as in not really thinking). My favorite characters are Mio and Mugi. I’ve even grown to like ‘Don’t Say Lazy.’ I find myself humming it sometimes.
I’m still on the look out for other shows. On the current queue:
- Requiem for the Phantom
- Ga-Rei Zero
- Kampfer
- Sora no Woto
- Tatakau Shisho – The Book of Bantorra
I’m not sure I’ll even be able to finish any of them this year, but at least I’ll be giving these shows another chance to be appreciated.
Recommendations are welcome too. 😀
Cute Proxy's Anime Rants 
I’m glad you saw the beauty and the glory that was Tama-chan in Bamboo Blade.
However, it is still disconcerting to hear her voice as the female lead in Denpateki no Kanojo.
K-On! and K-On!! are shows that I cannot get with. I think I watched the first 5 or 6 episodes of the first season and that was enough for me.
I got through Lucky Star and learned to like it eventually. But I can’t do it with the moe shows anymore. There’s a fortress around my heart that will not allow me to let these type of shows back in.
Unless they were Binchou-tan which I considered a modern-day version of those old World Masterpiece Theater shows. You know the ones; the poor, tragic orphan who finds happiness in the little things.
I wouldn’t watch Railgun because I couldn’t stand the two leads for Index either.
The new season has left me kind of cold. I was watching Shiki until I realized it’s an anime version of Salems Lot.
Right now I am watching ghosts of anime past (old OVA’s from the 80’s and 90’s).
Well, we’ll see what we can see…
>>K-On! and K-On!! are shows that I cannot get with.
Believe me, there are times that K-On really tries my patience. But I endure because there are times that it is worth watching when you do not want to think.
>>I got through Lucky Star and learned to like it eventually.
I think I tried Lucky Star before. Couldn’t finish the first ep though.
>>The new season has left me kind of cold. I was watching Shiki until I realized it’s an anime version of Salems Lot.
I haven’t seen Salem’s Lot, but I’ll be giving Shiki another episode or two.
>>Right now I am watching ghosts of anime past (old OVA’s from the 80′s and 90′s).
I wonder how long we can dig for oldies shows before we run out of good ones? Hehehe.
I’ll wait until the hype dies down for K-On before I try it again; like I did for Lucky Star.
As for Lucky Star, I pretend that the first four episodes did not exist. After that, it wasn’t that bad a show.
Salems Lot is an old Stephen King story were a new resident moves into the old Martsten’s place. People suddenly start getting sick and dying or end up missing.
I think you know where I am going with this…
I will keep digging until there is nothing left. We have almost 40 years worth of anime history that is just waiting to be uncovered and rediscovered.
My adventure has just begun!