Check-out Station: Nisemonogatari eps 10 & 11: people and family are horrible things, but I wouldn’t want to be without them.

So concludes another season of leachery and monsters, or is it monsters and leachery?  Or is it the leacherous monstrosity of a harem of horny monsters?  No, I guess all of that is a disservice to the season and the show.  It’s advanced anime for the veterans and the pervs.

I was wondering when the second half of the season (this very, very short season) would get down to business.  It did so in episode ten with

Nisemonogatari ep9: it’s hard and pressing against my boobs. That’s not what my karate master said.

It can’t be easy juggling your time between grown sexy women, horny and violent siblings, lesbian stalkers, supernatural lolis and the general good of those you care about.  Somehow Koyomi Araragi does it magnificently and poorly at the same time.  Though it does seem as though he’s spending as much time protecting the fruit that is his harem as he does protecting it.  Case in point: Nisemonogatari episode nine.

#Nisemonogatari ep8: ……*pant* ….*pant* …….*pant* #anime

Uh…. What the f*ck just happened?  Does that actually work? Are they really going to do this again? Is Shinobu enjoying this?  Of course she is.  More importantly, the next time I brush my teeth… am I gonna get a boner that damns me to hell?!

I have to rub my head a bit after that one. I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before somewhere. Nisemonogatari is not a starter anime.  It’s not a gateway anime.  It’s not an anime for the faint of heart.  Nisemonogatari is an anime for experts and veterans. I true appre- Hold on a sec, my heart is pounding unusually loudly after that episode.

Nisemonogatari ep7: what an absolutely, unquestionably incorrigible a-hole!

Talk about a duel.  I suppose you get everything you could want and expect out of this show in this one episode.  But I’m not I was prepared for how it was to be delivered.  And I was actually worried about the result.  The Karen Bee arc comes to an interesting ending, but the show overall is stronger for it.

#Nisemonogatari ep6: I love you so much that you had better understand the boundaries of this relationship. #anime

No matter how static things seem in this show, nothing is ever static.  Something is alway moving in the background, someone’s thoughts are always being molded, opinions moved in a different direction.  This episode is a good example. Most of the episode is a conversation with Senjougahara, with the rest taken up by an encounter with Hachikuji and Shinobu.  It’s all talk, but nothing is static.

Things seemed to be stable once the episode started. Araragi had declared at least a stalemate with the wreath fire bee by lowering, but not completely relieving Karen’s fever.  She apparently was no longer in danger.  And then he runs into Hachikuji and he gets dragged over the metaphorical hot coals for breaking tradition.  She makes some good points, points that I believe Hanekawa has already made.  His sisters are really indistinguishable from him, aside from age and sex of course.  Their reckless abandon and “hero-streak” are his as well.  Though it appears he’s no closer to realizing it this episode.

#Nisemonogatari ep5: I can’t imagine that Araragi’s in a playful mood right now. Is this about revenge or solving the problem? #anime

What an inconvenient solution. I’m sorry, but I’d have to let my sister keep the fever.

This episode definitely knocked me out of my playful mood. Seeing what that Kaiki dude did just sent me into an internal rage. I don’t care if that was my sister or not, Araragi can’t be completely cool underneath. For now though, it feels like he’s doing the right thing… sort of.  He’s at least trying to address her pain and health before getting some payback.

Maybe

#Nisemonogatari ep4: “We live until we die.” Araragi, you have an interesting harem. #anime

This was rather intense from start to finish.  I got the shock of seeing Hanekawa’s new look (she looks like she just ended a serious relationship, which I guess kinda did happen at the end of Bakemonogatari).  I got the shock of seeing Araragi almost smack one of his sisters. And I got the additional shock of seeing Shinobu pop out of the bath!  Geez!  There was a lot of tastefully, sensibly censored nudity in this episode.  I suppose the loli stuff might get a few of us anime lovers in trouble, too.  But it was Araragi’s conversation with Shinobu that left the lasting impression on me.

#InfiniteStratos ep1: this show is a direct confrontation between what I love and what I hate! #anime

Don’t get me wrong, I love hot chicks; I love mecha; I love pretty animation.   But I hate harems!   And

Check-out Station: Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou (“The Decadence of Akuto”)

I’m not a big fan of the now popular twelve to thirteen episode format of most anime adaptations.  It works well for certain types of shows.  Comedies and incomplete manga adaptations get a more fair shot at showing their true potential in this format.  But too often I feel like there aren’t enough slow, enjoyable moments for the characters to develop and distinguish themselves.  It’s a good thing that this show is such a fun, senseless ride that you don’t really notice.