Yes, friends, it may be a dark time for the internetz, but come rain, shine, copyright law or laser-fight, we will finish this delicious chocolate parfait!

And by "chocolate parfait", I mean "recaps of Moretsu Pirates, Familiar of Zero F, Phi Brain, Shana Final, Lagrange, Gundam AGE, Guilty Crown, Another, Persona 4, Bakuman, High School DxD, Natsume Yuujin-cho, Amagami SS+, Ano Natsu de Matteru, and Nisemonogatari!

Josh Tolentino

Moretsu Pirates episode 2

Oh, I think I'm in love. It's like sci-fi K-ON!!, but with a more concrete, less mercenary objective. It's totally a Girls Having Fun (In Space) anime, but doesn't strike that weird, voyeuristic vibe that comes out of the shows typically derided as "moeblob".

Hell, this high school class full of miniskirt-wearing high-schoolers actually looks hyper-competent when operating a starship, even as they act all, well, girly. Well, girly as far as my warped personal perceptions go. Even Kuroneko Chiaki doesn't stoop to the whole "badass" stereotype. She's skilled, though, enough that she can keep her hands on dessert in the middle of a firefight. It's those little touches that make Moretsu Pirates just so fun to watch.

[Moretsu Pirates uses those weird kana-keypads on Crunchyroll]

Familiar of Zero F episode 2

Oh, Saito, you and your Lemon nun fetish! Damn you pedoes!

And what's with all this Index cameo fever? 

Seriously, though, after the last season treaded water as it did it's fun to see Louise's tsundere tendencies channeled not into vainly denying that she likes Saito, but to making their existing relationship more, well...fun. For the viewer, at least.

The plot is ramping up, as well, with WMDs, holy war, and yet more dickishness from Tabitha's uncle. Why is the pope an elf? I thought they hated elves? And who will be Tiffa's familiar? I'd have thought they would have advanced this subplot earlier than they did.

[Get your Lemon and Melon goodness on Crunchyroll]

Elliot Gay

Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne Episode 2

Ladies and gentlemen, I can officially confirm that massive boobs exist in the Lagrange universe. I know this was a concern for many of you so I'm rather happy that I could squash those fears. Outside of that, this week's episode was more of the same; Madoka is still a fun protagonist but everything else just feels generic and kind of lazy. 

After taking down the enemy Ovid, Madoka is surprised to find out that the whole mech fighting thing wasn't just a one-time event. In an attempt to make a phone call to her cousin Yoko, she gets lost in the base and bumps into Muginami and her massive breasts. Confused and completely out of her element, Madoka is quickly picked up by Lan who seems deeply troubled that she can't do more to help her new friend. An enemy Ovid descends from space and our heroine gets her ass handed to her, crashing straight into the ocean. Thank God for relatives though; Yoko calls Madoka's cell (underwater wat) and chews her out for giving up so quickly. With a newly discovered burst of confidence (read as: rage), our plucky robot pilot emerges from beneath the surface of the sea ready to battle. The episode ends with a second enemy Ovid appearing and getting ready for a pincer attack with his partner.

I know I said earlier that episode 2 was more of the same, but at least this time around it felt a little bit more entertaining. I'm starting to warm up to Lan and there seem to be signs that she's much more significant within the alien hierarchy than I expected. I was also pleasantly surprised that she's not just going to be the stoic pale girl. I hope.

There are two things I found myself bothered by this week. The first of which is the lazy writing which seems to wave off important/illogical things happening with a silly wave of the hand. The whole sequence in which Madoka gets lost, bumps into a secret mech and the future pilot of it seemed hackneyed, despite being cute. Likewise, while I enjoyed the idea of Yoko giving her cousin a pep talk, the whole thing came off as forced. When one of the characters is even surprised by a cell phone working under a situation like that, we have a problem.

My other major problem is that the current 'villains' are so incredibly generic and underwhelming that I feel myself wanting to yawn anytime they appear onscreen. I'm sure they won't be the primary enemy for much longer given how quickly they're prone to lose, but it doesn't make them any less dull.

There's a fun, solid series in Lagrange. I just hope that it gets to that point before I get worn out.

[Catch Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne on Viz Anime]

Shakugan no Shana Final Episode 14

New opening huzzah! There seems to be a lot of foreshadowing all over the place, but for the time being I just want to jump straight into the episode proper.

Yuji/God of Creation finally makes his grand declaration, revealing to both the Crimson Denizens and the Flame Haze what his plans actually are. His lofty goal is to create Xanadu, a perfect copy of the human world, in the rift that he was once trapped in. Xanadu would be the home of the new Crimson Denizens where they could live in peace and harmony. The Flame Hazes are initially not so happy about this, concerned about how the balance between worlds would be effected by a third plain of existence. This is where things get crazy. Yuji/God of Creation announces that in his slumber/entrapment, he has figured out a way to avoid destroying the balance between worlds. He promises that once he and his people leave, they will never return, effectively ending the Flame Hazes' long battle.

One by one, Flame Hazes toss down their weapons, breaking into a panic. The Denizens take advantage of the situation and begin to wipe out of heroes one by one. Shana and the others decide that for the time being, they need to save those they can and retreat as quickly as possible. 

I'm glad we finally know what the hell Yuji/God of Creation is up to. The idea seems noble enough; create a copy of the Earth so that the Denizens can live in their own world. Yuji appears convinced that this will help to eliminate the human world of its endless pain and suffering. I thought it was a nice touch to flash back to that girl he met back in season one who faded away. Having spent so much time with the Flame Hazes and the Denizens this season, I completely forgot about the whole Torch thing. Still, I'm sure the God of Creation has something nasty up his sleeve. I'm imagining that he probably hasn't actually solved the problem pertaining to keeping the balance between worlds.

Another drama and action filled episode of Shana this week. You would be forgiven for thinking this was an entirely different show than the first season we got years back. Final has just been a much bigger and broader feel to it and even if everything doesn't quite click into place, I'll give it credit for trying. There's still plenty of time left to tie up all the loose ends so let's hope that J.C. Staff can keep up the pace.

[Check out Shakugan no Shana Final on Funimation and Nico Nico!]

Marcus Speer

Chihayafuru Episode 13-15

Representing Tokyo, Chihaya and the gang is ready to advance through the school tournament... that is until Chihaya develops a fever that is enough to pull her out.  It's interesting how Chihayafuru takes the high road in this elimination: the other teammates suffer and ultimately lose the tourney relatively early on as Chihaya rests. This series is very patient when it comes to developing the players skills and comfortable with having the main characters lose, which is incredibly welcomed in a competitive anime.

Alongside the events at Omi Jingu, Arata makes a lengthy appearance in these episodes as we learn a bit more about his grandfather/mentor, why he quit karuta and why he comes to ultimately cheer Chihaya and the team on. While he never gets the chance for the latter, he does talk with his former friends before threatening Taichi that the next time they meet, it'll be in a match.

Now that Chihaya is well and the gang determined, the time for the individual competition is underway. While the teammates were split into three groups based on their class, Chihaya is all alone in Class A, and this ultimately leads her to The Queen, a feared female player who has been in Class A since the fourth grade. Once again, the anime doesn't shy away from Chihaya getting her ass kicked for the majority of two episodes, but even when down by 17 cards straight in their match, Chihaya makes some big plays to not only rattle the nerve of the Queen, but also enough to have Chihaya considered a rival for  doing as good as she did.

Once again, the series pulls a fast one and cuts straight to Chihaya in defeat, only able to take five cards from her opponent, yet with the Queen vowing to never have another card taken away from her, the build-up to their next match is sure to be intense, if only because the series is unpredictable enough to have the main character not guaranteed a win. With a more experienced and focused team returning to the school, there's now a gradual climb in team performance that is just enough to get me excited for what Chihayafuru has in store next. More so than any action sport series (like my favorite, Hajime no Ippo), I'm still amazed by how sucked in I am by the simple sport of karuta. Life imitating art, I suppose...

Pedro Cortes

Persona 4 Episode 14

This week is the 'gotta jam all these social links into a half hour' episode. Yu tutors a social awkward kid, works at a daycare center, helps an old lady out and joins a lusty cougar on a date. It acts as an amusing compliment to last week's summer adventures. Yu gets an intimate understanding of young debt as well. That bloody Neo Featherman must of have been some sort of limited Soul of Chogokin to cost ¥68,000. Also, Yu trying to imitate Kuma freaking killed me. Next week is the requisite school trip, so get ready for that.

[Persona 4 airs on Crunchyroll]

Mobile Suit Gundam AGE Episode 14

Well, people wanted AGE to get more serious and with this episode they'll get their wish. We've already seen a crusty old guy bite it, but one of the younger characters dies in a pretty bad way. While Flit and Desil are fighting, the little punk ass introduces his secret weapon. It's none other than Yurin in an slaved suit. Used as an amplifier for his X-Rounder abilities, Desil uses the laser bits to push Flit to near defeat. When the little bastard goes in for the kill, Yurin takes the shot for Flit. With a sword through the center of the mech, Yurin gives her newtype-esque good bye to Flit and dies along with her mech. Flit takes out his rage on Desil and leaves the arrogant little kid floating off into space. The episode ends with the Diva landing in the UE's base and preparing for a ground excursion. 

From what I've heard, next week is the last episode of Flit's arc of AGE, so following that we'll jump to his son. It'll be interesting to see what Yurin's death has on Flit in the long run. I don't know if it'll be as big as Lalah's death was in the original Mobile Suit Gundam, but it's definitely going to leave a hole in Flit's heart.

Josh Totman

High School DxD Episode 2

Things are looking up for this fanservice laced late night anime.  Getting a little more back story now.  We can start expecting more actual story to happen.  Our main man on the scene now realizes he is a demon and what is purpose is.  Kind of.  He starts to understand that he has to make contracts with the people who summon demons.  By getting said contracts, he obtains more power.  Power enough to win his own slave.  What will the man that wants to be the Harem Demon to do?  Work his ass off that's what!

First up is an otaku like himself.  This is leads to some hilarity and slight creepiness.  Which I always find amusing when Otaku fight about a series.  Moving on from that he finally understands what and how to use the "Sacred Gear" that is inside him.  A power put there by God.  Where this is heading is anyone's guess.

On a side note.  There are even more bare breasts in this episode.  Enjoy!

Salvador G-Rodiles

Ano Natsu de Matteru Episode 2

Continuing from last weeks set up, Ano Natsu begins to dive more into the plot. Ichika has been accepted by Kaito's sister, and the first meeting regarding the film is about to take place. However, Remon has some plans of her own during this faithful get together.

Judging from this week's episode, the show seems to be taking a more comedic route for the story so far. While the show has its minor sci-fi elements thrown in, the main focus is on the realistic vibe that the series is going with its characters. Aside from the humor displayed so far, there is also has a chance that Ano Natsu could take a more dramatic route regarding Kaito's situation with Ichika's arrival. Which has the potential to lead to some intense episodes in the future.

Ano Natsu succeeds in giving the viewers the proper feel based on the scenarios that they were thrown into, which is thanks to the way everything was set up. Silly or dramatic, it's going to be interesting to see what ordeals are going to be thrown at the cast during their summer vacation. One thing for sure, they will have to watch out for whatever tricks Remon has up her sleeve during the making of this film.

[You can find Ano Natsu de Matteru at crunchyroll.com]

Chris Walden

Bakuman Season 2 Episode 15

Half an episode of moping around all miserable, half an episode of pure lovey-dovey romance. Well, as lovey-dovey as this is going to get, anyway. Mashiro and Azuki continue to ignore each other like siblings squabbling over who is right (spoiler: totally Mashiro), which causes Takagi to actually do the decent thing and spill the beans on his non-affair. Why wouldn't you do this earlier? Eugh! Meanwhile we see Aoki finally ask Nakai to become her assistant again, which results in a perfectly reasonable condition. Perfectly reasonably for a douchebag anyway. Nakai was let off easy with the slap, as he fully deserved a roundhouse kick to the face. 

Takagi decides to meet with Kaya at the zoo, which in hindsight he shouldn't have done considering Aoki was always going to make a 'coincidental' appearance. By that, I figure she was probably just stalking the poor guy in an attempt to snatch him away. Kaya sees them together, cue the misunderstandings and end it with... marriage? That's right, we have our first manga-marriage guys! Aoki seems to get into the whole confession thing, and shortly afterwards everyone is friends again. I do feel that I'm watching a soap opera at times. 

Phi Brain Episode 15

Anyone would have thought Rook was dead! Blimey, Kaito puts Mashiro to shame in the moping department, and we certainly don't need him levelling up to Shinji standards. Kaito eventually decides to explore the old school/laboratory/prison that Rook used to live in, finding some pretty disturbing puzzle ideas from someone who would have only been a kid at the time. Kaito then starts moping further, crying about how his friendship must have been a lie. If you've ever seen Street Fighter: The Movie, I'm going to assume that Rook underwent something similar to what Blanka went through. 

Ana has drifted over to 'great henge', which he discovers is another puzzle set up by the P.O.G. for him specifically. He does a good job of showing the 'giver' up though, as he proceeds to skip through the puzzle, not setting off any of the traps. You can't really be surprised when most of the maze he has to walk through are relatively direct, but when Ana has the ability to talk to rocks or whatever, it's just embarrassing. He finishes the puzzle, then almost gets killed by Cubic running in like an idiot, in what I can only imagine was an attempt to redeem his already insignificant character. GG Cubic. GG. 

[You can catch Phi Brain fever on The Anime Network!]

Natsume Yuujinchou Shi Episode 3

What could sweeten up this gem of a show even further? Cute yet poisonous balls of fluff, that's what! Natsume saves one of these puffballs from a flock of crows, which is a little bizarre as it's a youkai. I honestly can't remember if they established that animals can see them or not! Still, Natsume discovers that it has latched on to Nyanko-sensei and entered his home, and when discovered it begins to head butt the walls around his room with so much force that his walls get fairly blood stained. Nothing a plaster and some cream can't sort though! Puffball with a plaster is too damn adorable. 

The charming ghost from the beginning of the episode returns to threaten Natsume by claiming she will burn his house down. Because she lost her ring. She lost her ring. Ah, whatever! Natsume and Nyanko-sensei come to the hugely unlikely conclusion that it got caught up in the puffball, so they go and hunt it down. In their search, they seem to accidentally trigger a youkai hunt. In comes Natsume to save the day, averting puffball slaughter, getting the ring back, and having the furry fiends help him out when the ring youkai tries to kill him anyway, by turning into a goat-dragon. Goat-dragons are cool guys. 

[Show some spirit by watching this on Crunchyroll!]

Amagami SS+ Episode 2

After seeing this episode, there is no doubt in my mind that this 'bonus' season is going to be absolutely worth it. If you think about it, it's the first time we get to see Junichi plus significant other do that 'advance level' stuff. Yeah, that's right. Lip connections. Or at least, a significant amount of it. Back to the plot at hand, Ayatsuji drags Junichi away from demon girl, but instead of doing the tearful 'how could you' routine, she finds the nearest shed and gets all lip-intimate. Crikey! Junichi can hardly contain himself, but Ayatsuji knows fully well that it was a ploy, rather than him being a dirty cheat. 

The campaign continues, and after some mighty hard work Ayatsuji manages to snatch the student council position. Demon girl does her best Doctor Claw impression, claiming that she'll take the position next year. The two new members of the council walk home together, where Junichi uses his male protective instinct to fend off a tame looking dog and drown himself in the lake. Well, nearly, but it's lucky Ayatsuji has a house with a bath in it nearby. Cue a nose-drippingly good bath scene, which features perhaps too much nervousness and swimsuit for my liking, but absolutely adorable nonetheless. Rihoko is up next, so we'll get to see early on if they can salvage her disappointing arc.

[Head over to The Anime Network if you want Amagami SS+ to wash your back!]

Hiroko Yamamura

Another Episode 2

Wow, I did not expect this at all. Since I really wasn't watching anything this Winter Season, Pedro Cortez graciously invited me to take over the weekly round up of Another. I went into the show knowing very little. I saw the art work and trailer, and thought the designs were wonderful, a great contrast to the dark story settings. After two episodes I'l admit that I'm a believer in Another.

In short, not a lot happened or really changed from episode one to two. Are we building up to the facts presented in the narration in the first episode's monologue? Wouldn't it be cool if Mei is someone totally different? Wishful thinking.

The slow burn aspect of the show works really well here. Things play out a lot like a classic episode of the Twilight Zone. The things that are most interesting are the things that you don't know yet and haven't seen. I can't say enough about the sound effects and score for the animation as well, they really drive and move the scenes in a dramatic fashion.

I don't know if I can even sum up what happened in the last two episodes, and no one is showing their cards yet. Just the way I like it. Could everything fall apart and things become and action show? Maybe, but I hope this creepy pace keeps up.

[Creep over to Crunchyroll to get your Another fix]

Guilty Crown Episode 12

I get it, sometimes you get so crazy you make out with your brother and want to marry him. To think I've been lost this whole time... 

Episode 12 really goes for it, and in some ways succeeds. I have to give the show credit for sticking by its ridiculous guns. Things just happen to fall into place in the Guilty Crown universe, and the writers have no qualms about it. I kind of respect it.

In some ways the show goes for a real ending, completely with non-standard ending credits. I would have walked away pretty satisfied and entertained at this point, maybe picking up an Inori action figure when it comes out, but just so you know, there's another episode next week, and for a while more. 22 Episodes in total I think. At this point I don't know where or how the show will keep going. I'm hoping that I'm pleasantly surprised.

[Head over to Hulu to catch the newest Guilty Crown]

Bob Muir

Nisemonogatari Episode 2

Koyomi finally makes it to Nadeko's house, where she proceeds to put the moves on him. Realizing that it might be bad to get intimate with his younger sister's friend, he manages to fend off her advances while they play a game of Life. Once he leaves, he meets up with his precocious sister Karen, who acts cool while appearing in a stupid pose. When Karen leaves to take care of something, Koyomi heads to Suruga's house, where she sexually teases him over and over again.

Consider this episode payback for all the creepy jokes Koyomi made to Mayoi in the last episode. Between Nadeko and Suruga, Koyomi's only respite from cockteasing is his sister Karen, and even she talks to him with her crotch thrust towards the sky, as the camera so carefully emphasized. Speaking of Karen, it's interesting that there's finally a tomboy in the cast. She has the boundless enthusiasm normally reserved for hot-blooded mecha pilots, and I wouldn't be surprised if she imagines herself in that role, with all her superhero catchphrases.

It's interesting to note that we're at the second episode of this second season, and SHAFT still hasn't reintroduced every character for new audiences, which I'm quite happy about. They're taking their time instead of tossing everyone in for the hell of it. And like Bakemonogatari had several different openings for a short series, Nisemonogatari is already on its second opening, a catchy pop-ska number. It's no "Stable Staple" or "Renai Circulation," but give it time, it could grow on me.

I also don't know where the plot is going yet. At some point, we're going to have to see how the opening scene of the first episode ties into the story, but Nisemonogatari is in no rush to get there. Karen's phone call seems to suggest that she's going to go help a friend of hers with a problem, so hopefully we get some plot in episode three, but for now, I'm happy to just listen to the wonderful dialogue and watch the pretty modernist visuals.

[Crunchyroll is your hook-up for episodes of Nisemonogatari]