The God of High School – 03 [wisdom/kingdom]

After three episodes, The God of High School still has no intention of explaining why its martial arts tournament is of such earth-shattering consequence. Top Korean politicians are involved in its operation, the Pentagon is monitoring its progress, and now a religious cult is planning to hijack the tourney for its own gain. In all three of these opening scenes, the links between those organizations and the tournament itself have been purposefully vague, which has surely frustrated a portion of the series’ audience. Personally, though, I’m not sweating the details at this stage. The fights are still fun, the tone is still dumb, and the story is moving at a faster-than-average clip. That narrative speed may be pushing us toward the threshold of Big Reveals, or it might blow past the governments and cults without a reason for their appearance. Either way, GoH is the kind of show that doesn’t need to justify its detours – just its developments. And boy, were there a ton of the latter in this episode.

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The God of High School – 02 [renewal/soul]

The God of High School is far from my usual blogging fare. I’m not averse to action series by any means (Dorohedoro is one of my favorite anime of 2020 so far), but something so brashly combat-driven would usually fall outside my strike zone. And yet, I can’t deny the raw energy on display here, which stems mainly from the fight animation. After just two episodes, the list of ADs and studios providing 2nd key animation already spans plenty of virtual parchment, and it’s easy to see where their efforts are going. GoH’s lawless brawls are fast and furious, accounting for 90% of the show’s highlights thus far – but there’s a bit more to the show’s structure than endless martial arts matchups.

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MHA Season 4 Review – 80/100

My Hero Academia is the forerunner of modern shounen – the descendant, if you will, of Bleach, HxH, One Piece, and Fairy Tale.  With 2 movies, 4 seasons, infinite merch and cosplay, MHA is a force to be reckoned with. With that in mind, Season 4 proved to be a transitional season, with our lead Midoriya moving forward in the world of heroes and All-Might fading, set against a backdrop of a world trying to cope. 

(I’m also part of the movement to make 50 the new average score, not 70.)

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MHA – 86-88 [School Festival, Hero Billboard Chart, and HIS START]

MHA flexed hard with this finale.  Most other shows bring out some fanservice or flashy action – no, MHA made a legitimate MINIATURE MOVIE as their finale (why it gets all caps in the title). You’re thinking, oh sure, they had some action, blah blah – no.  This was in-theater-movie animation quality.  For a single season finale.  Try to top that, Attack on Titan and your basement.

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