First Impressions of Winter 2011 Anime Series

First, the loving spoonful:

• I will definitely watch:
• "Yumekui Merry"
• "Beelzebub"
• "Kore wa Zombie desu ka"
• "Level E"

• I will give it another episode
• "Gosick"
• "Puelle Magi Madoka Magica"
• "Infinite Stratos"
• "Dragon Crisis"

• Crap
• "Freezing"
• "Rio Rainbow Gate"

More Details about the series:

• "Gosick" ("Gothic") -- A really nice and normal Japanese boy transfers to a boarding school in a fictional European country in the Alps.  For reasons I didn't quite understand the students nickname him "The Dark Reaper".  He joins up with mysterious doll-like Goth-Loli named Victorique to solve crimes for a buffoon police detective.  The girl is a typical spoiled-ojou type and the boy, Kujo, is sucked along into the madness by his own curiosity.  It's not a particularly original series, but the first episode was well done and piqued my interest.  First Impression: 3/5
• "Rio Rainbow Gate" -- This series is about the adventures of the dealer Rio (aka "The Goddess of Victory") as she spreads luck and fan service through the fictional Howard Casino.  This show is 100% fan service -- Boo!  First Impression: 1/5 (by the way, Rio would be fired instantly for losing too much money for the house...stoopid...)
• "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" -- There was a glass school, chanting cotton balls with teeth and mustaches, butterflies, rave music, and tween girls running around with a cat-rabbit creature.  Message to the animators: STOP TAKING DRUGS! THEY ARE BAD FOR YOU! I don't know what the heck was going on in that anime and I'm not sure I want to.  The main character looks freaky to me because she has the face and hairstyle of a 4-year old on the body of a 12-year old. First Impression: 1/5, BUT, worth a second look because the first episode may have been super messed up for shock value.  Hopefully some sort of story will be revealed in the second episode.
• "Yumekui Merry" --  A boy who can predict other people's dreams has the same dream every night -- He's being chased by an army of cats.  One day a mysterious girl lands on him and later she appears in a waking dream he's having.  In the dream she defeats the cat boss and demands that the cat boss take her back to the dream world.  I love the Cat Boss and my interest is definitely piqued.  First Impression: 4/5
• "Infinite Stratos" -- By some miracle a boy is able to pilot a gundam that only girls can pilot.  He ends up going to an all girls boarding school to learn to master this gundam only to become roommates with his shy and violent childhood friend.  In general this show looks stupid, but I do want to see the boy kick this obnoxious British girl's behind in the gundam battle that is promised for episode 2, so I'll stick around for that.  First Impression: 2/5
• "Beelzebub" -- Delinquents and an angry infant who's the son of Satan.  Need I say more?  First Impression:  5/5
• "Kore wa Zombie Desuka?" -- Some poor smuck of a boy is murdered, resurrected by a cute necromancer, and then runs into a magical girl with a chainsaw in the town cemetery.  Stuff happens and in the end he's a zombie and a magical girl cross dresser.  You had me at "zombie".  First Impression: 5/5   
• "Level E" -- A kid on a baseball scholarship moves to a new city, only to find himself rooming with a freeloading Bishonen alien.  The interactions between the kid and the alien are priceless and the story has hints of a world like the one in "Men in Black".  First Impression: 5/5
• "Freezing" -- I couldn't pay any attention to the first episode, so I don't know what happened and apparently my brain rejected it within 30-seconds.   First Impression: 0/5
• "Dragon Crisis" -- Meek boy, Ryuji,  and his well-endowed treasure hunting second cousin steal a dragon from some criminals.  The "dragon" is a fire breathing 'tween girl who is extremely attached to Ryuji, AND, Ryuji may know this girl because she's appeared in his dreams.  First Impression: 2/5 -- Lame, but the promise of a kooky scientist father earns this series a second look.