Axis Power Heatlia: ★★★★☆

Even if you're not into history, Hetalia is worth watching. It's entertaining (if you're into political/historical satire) and the episodes are divided into short five-minute clips. I've watched both the original and the dub and, honestly, they're both pretty good. But, due to the pace of the show, unless you don't mind pausing and rewinding every few seconds to minutes, I would recommend watching it in English (things tend to go by really fast).

The very first episode is a little disorienting because it bounces so quickly from nation to nation, but the first episode is really there just to give you an idea of the characters. Following episodes aren't as disorganized.

In terms of storyline — it supposedly follows the events of WWI/WWII, but that varies and, often times, the series is just focused on poking fun at stereotypes. If you're into strong character development, provoking plots, etc — you might not be so pleased with APH. It is, primarily, a comedic sketch (although there are dramatic moments) and, really, is just a relaxed, laid-back series.



Darker Than Black 1 & 2: ★★★☆☆

The series, should honestly, only be scored a 2.5, but I rounded it up for the three (since I couldn't do a half star, lol).

Overall, the series is an action-packed title. They are plenty of characters, a bit of intrigue, and, overall, a decent storyline. But all this falls through the cracks with season 2. Season 2 is, in comparison to Season 1, slow and predictable (except for the big reveal about Hei). It never recovers and the ending is highly unsatisfying. I liked the concept presented, but SSN2 is really a huge disappointment. And I wish I could say: Just watch SSN1 and forget about SSN2, but the two are very much connected and SSN2 ties up the loose ends SSN1 couldn't.