First impressions of the fall ’09 anime

The premiere week of the fall 2009 anime series is just about over, so I thought I’d offer my opinion on the ones I’ve checked out so far…

I’ve already written my thoughts about Inuyasha: The Final Act here. As for the rest of the shows, here are my thoughts after watching the first episode of each:

Darker than Black: Ryuusei no Gemini (Comet of Gemini)

So far, it’s just as action-packed and intense as the first series. Though episode 1 mostly focused on the new character, Suou, it offered an interesting new plot surrounding her. Looking forward to the return of Hei and Yin, and seeing how they handle new friends and foes.
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Kimi ni Todoke

A shoujo series, plain and simple, but it seems like it will be a good one. Although it’s already utilizing a lot of shoujo cliches, it’s utilizing them well.
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Kobato.

Haven’t watched a CLAMP series in a while, and Kobato definitely has CLAMP written all over it – a cute, sweet female protagonist, her animal guide/sidekick, lots of talk about dreams and feelings, and pretty animation. Kobato doesn’t seem like it will be the most original CLAMP series, but it’s hard to tell just by the first episode. We’ll see once the plot gets going.
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Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: Purezza

So far, this sequel is just what I expected. Not sure why I like this series that’s riddled with fan service and cliche characters – I just do. One thing that stood out in this show so far is the awesome opening:

The design is amazing and I love how they make it look like an otaku magazine XD
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Nyan Koi!

I thought this show would insult my intelligence, but the first episode was pretty fun. The humor isn’t too obnoxious and it seems like it will continue to be enjoyable. Just hope it doesn’t turn stale too soon.
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Seitokai no Ichizon (The Student Council’s Own Discretion)

Had no plans to watch this one, but I wanted to check it out after I read reviews of the first episode. If you like humor focused on parodying otaku culture, then this show is hilarious – at least the first episode is. It looks like it could be the kind of show with a great first episode and mediocre other episodes. I hope the rest of the series continues to be entertaining.
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Tegami Bachi (Letter Bee)

Another series I wasn’t planning to watch but wanted to after reading reviews. I’m not sure if I’ll continue watching it since episode 1 didn’t particularly catch my appeal. The story seems interesting but the characters seem a bit too cliche. I’ll see how episode 2 goes.
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In addition to these, I’m still planning on checking out Fairy Tale, Aoi Bungaku, and the Natsu no Arashi! sequel. I’m thinking about To Aru Kagaku no Railgun but I’m not sure if I have time for any more.