Jigoku Shoujo: Futakomori (Hell Girl Second Cage)

Description on AnimeDB.net

I am five episodes into Jigoku Shoujo: Futakomori, the second installment of the Jigoku Shoujo series. Following the final episodes of the first season of Jigoku Shoujo, we've already found out about where Enma Ai comes from and why she's doing what she does.

As far as a second installment, this anime does a good job of continuing the nature of the episodes seen in the middle of the first season. After all the episodes that devote a good portion of the episode to animations of Enma Ai suiting up and delivering souls to hell, and before the episodes that introduce that little girl that could see what Enma Ai sees. Those in-between episodes, are what these Futakomori episodes reflect. Thank goodness, as I was getting tired of that little girl and her wierdo "dad". So we've escaped the usual formula of person gets their revenge and lives with it. Now we're exploring more of the revenge-seekers and what happens after they've "pulled the red string".

Along comes this creepy-creepy-creepy-faced little girl (did someone take a vacuum to her eye sockets?) who does nothing but, well, annoy me with every instance she appears. She's a total mystery and I can't wait for her story to be told--Because that's the only payoff I can imagine, and that helps me tolerate her existence in the anime for now. It had better be a good story. She even irritates the other supporting characters.

For some reason, I like watching this creepy and sometimes disturbing anime right before I go to bed. I have no idea why. This and Black Lagoon, I like to watch right before bed.

Recommendations:

• Jigoku Shoujo...the first season, introduces Jigoku shoujo and her helpers, some simpler cases
• Jigoku Shoujo: Mitsuganae...this season focuses on a high school, and shows us that adults aren't the only ones that desire vengeance
• Shigofumi...communicating with death, the last piece of snail mail, the post-girl has her own dark secrets
• GankutsuOu...talk about revenge served cold, this colorful and dark story enjoys every episode to set up for the finale
• Mononoke...No-longer-human spirits want vengeance too, creative and complex vengeance that's got mystery to it
• Umineko no Naku Koro ni...a golden witch throws down a challenge to solve her epitaph before all the members of a rich family are picked off in gruesome killings (See Anime Spotlight)

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Shuffle: Memories

Description on AnimeDB.net

Can someone tell me what Shuffle: Memories is supposed to be about?

I watched all of Shuffle!, and thought it was ok. I decided to check out what Shuffle Memories is all about. A prequel, the same characters but thrown into different roles in a different world, an actual sequel that followed the first--"which would it be?" I thought.

After watching not 1, not 2, but 3 episodes, I'm...disappointed. Episode 1 is completely devoted to introducing us to each of the main and many supporting characters and includes a peek of what happened to them during Shuffle!. Episode 2 had a completely new opening and ending animation devoted to Kaede (orange-haired) and the episode was all about Kaede, too. If you've watched Shuffle, imagine the episodes that focused on Kaede and cut them out of their respective episodes and package them together as a special Kaede-only episode--that was Episode 2. Episode 3 goes the same formula. Beginning and ending and whole episode is all about the green-haired Asa-sempai.

So there you have it. 3 episodes, and I saw virtually nothing new. Is this all that Shuffle Memories supposed to be? Is the animation production company trying to get all they can from the previous Shuffle! footage? Too under-motivated to do research. nothing on animenfo.com about the story. blah. I won't be downloading this anymore if the next episode is more of the same.

Recommendations:

• Shuffle!...the first season, it had a plot going and characters that added some variety, basic opportunistic game-based harem
• Love Hina...lots of girls and a clueless guy, throw in a hot spring bath, add some laughs, turtles play an interesting role

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