Finished watching Kobato

Finished watching Kobato (2009, Madhouse, 24 epi.) on 5/26/2016.

Kobato is an innocent, kind-hearted young girl on a mission to fill up her glass bottle with kompeito hard-candies. But these candies aren't just regular ones, they appear inside her bottle everytime she heals a broken heart, a not-so-easy task. But with her she carries Ioryogi-san, a fire-breathing, quick-tempered, stuff animal doll who guides Kobato through her ordeal.

7/10 - Very nice. This show has a lot of heart and Kobato is sure to tug at your emotions when her personality is challenged by the harsh realities that life presents. But the show doesn't let you stay down for too long as Kobato picks herself right up with her silly ideas which are often literally burned down by Ioryogi's fire breath. Ioryogi is my favorite character, his temper amuses me and for a stuffed doll his facial expressions are epic! The story is based on the CLAMP manga by the same name, but I haven't read it yet so I can't say how it compares. Even so, I enjoyed this show nonetheless. The art quality was good and so was the animation. The production doesn't feel rushed or anything. Nothing that you wouldn't expect from Madhouse.

Finished watching Kaleido Star

Finished watching Kaleido Star S01 (2003, Gonzo, 26 epi.) on 4/18/2016.

Sora, a young acrobat from Japan, travels to America to join a world famous acrobatic circus known as Kaleido Star. With much luck she gets accepted and a small, floating, masked man the size of a beer bottle reveals himself to her as Fool, the Spirit of the Stage, seen only by those who have a burning passion to perform.

7/10 – This show was alright. The story, although with minor plot holes and trivial awkwardnesses was pretty decent and somewhat engaging. And while the art style wasn't that bad, I feel like this show could've benefitted from a bit better quality. The animation itself only got better when the characters performed complicated maneuvers, otherwise it would be pretty mediocre. The soundtrack doesn't have much to say about itself. Nothing really stood out to me, not even the opening and ending themes. I don't have anything too bad against this show, it's pretty decent for what it is and I would recommend it. But it didn't really convince me to watch the second season arc.