Category: Finished Series: Adventure/Fantasy/Science Fiction

We did it everyone, we made it to the finale of Dr. STONE S2! It was a bumpy ride no doubt, but Senku and Tsukasa managed to finish strong. And with a season 3 already on the way the ride doesn’t stop here! So without further ado, lets jump into it.

First and foremost lets talk about what’s to come next, both in and out of the story. With a Season 3 already announced, Dr. STONE is about to really expand the scope of its story. From science vs strength, Naturalism vs Modernism, to more of a science fiction mystery about discovering the source of the petrification. For me this is nothing but a good thing as it is here that Dr. STONE really finds its stride. Not only do the conflicts change to better support the science focus, it also allows the series to explore a wider variety of science topics. For many though I can see this shift to being more adventure focused as a bad thing. We no longer have a main villain, a driving antagonistic force. But as a long time fan of the series I can only ask you give it a shot.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 11 [Prologue of Dr. STONE]” →

Ding dong the witch is dead… or someone is at least in this weeks episode of Dr. STONE! Lot’s to talk about, some new and some old, so lets dive into it.

As always I want to start with the production. Rather than talk about the combat being about as animated as it usually is though, lets talk about something positive: Lighting and shot direction. These are two of Dr. STONE’s biggest strengths and this episode continues that trend. Whether it be a beachside setting sun or Hyoga’s presence in the foreground of someone else’s shot, Dr. STONE had some great scenes this week. Seriously just look at some of these in the gallery above or the one-offs below. It’s amazing what even a diluted version of Boichi’s art-style can do. His thick and scratchy linework adding so much texture to the furs and outfits of the characters. I wish that Dr. STONE had kept up what it showed early with Homura. But at least it managed to hold onto the stills.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 10 [Humanity’s Strongest Tag Team]” →

It’s done, the war is over, peace has come to Dr. STONE! Or at least that’s what it wants you to think. With 2 episodes left something is yet to come. What it is, we will have to wait and find out. But as far as this week goes lets dive right in shall we?

Now normally I would start this section lamenting Dr. STONE’s action production. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, Dr. STONE is not an action show and it shows. But you already know that by now so lets skip to the good stuff and talk Tsukasa! This was a good week for him as Dr. STONE acknowledged a lot of holes in Senku’s “Save everyone” argument. If you have limited fluid, who do you save? How do you feed them all in a stone world, etc. Tsukasa saw these problems and, with a decent amount of bias, took that terrible choice onto himself. He’s always ridden the line of a redeemable villain. This week cemented that for him. Most important of all though it took what was previously a “Fuck yeah action” finale and shifted it to a “Fuck yeah humanity” one. And you know I love those.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 9 [To Destroy and to Save]” →

Yes, I know I’m late on this weeks Dr. STONE. In my defense work has gotten busy and I’m closing/moving into my new house this week, but the real issue is just not knowing what to write. This week of Dr. STONE was pretty straight forward all things considered. So lets leave all the flowery language and metaphors behind and just jump right into it.

I want to start by pointing out some clever directorial tricks I saw this week, starting with the languages. Dr. STONE isn’t the first anime have bilingual characters and it won’t be the last. But many anime struggle with how to portray this. Sometimes you get complete Engrish and other times they don’t even try at all, such as with Vinland Saga. But Dr. STONE was rather clever about it I think. It started in Engrish, established the conversation, before blending back into Japanese while still matching the mouth flaps the whole time. It’s a really simple trick but one I wish more anime would make use of. Beyond the languages, Dr. STONE also had some rather evocative shots this week. From Yuzuriha’s secret to Gen holding Lillian’s throat as he spoke with her voice. They did a good job of bringing emotion to a scene with limited animation.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 7 [Secret Mission]” →

Wooo more Dr. STONE! This week Chrome channels the collective intelligence of the modern world to enact the most daring escape in 3 millennia. And the best part is that’s only slightly hyperbole. So without further ado lets dive in!

This was a big week for Chrome and Dr. STONE as a whole. It was effectively the culmination of Chrome’s story these past few cours. His final transformation from a “primitive” to a full on science user. No help, no Senku, just using what he had learned and his own ingenuity, and I really like how it was presented. Dr. STONE opened the episode by introducing Yo and using him to reestablish how different Chrome is from more “modern” people. After all, even as meat heads they have a modern education and know a basic amount of science. More than you would expect a “primitive” to know at any rate. But Dr. STONE uses this to remind us that science has no barriers, anyone can use it if they put their mind to it. Whether it be a modern day genius like Senku or a “simple primitive” like Chrome.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 6 [Prison Break]” →

This weeks sees the Senku 1 get both a name change and an upgrade! Meanwhile Chrome comes up with a plan of escape and Tsukasa begins to take action, all in this weeks episode of Pimp My Ride Dr. STONE! So without further ado, lets dive in!

First I want to talk about the slow shift in focus we’ve seen these last two episodes. I said in the seasonal preview that I was afraid this season of Dr. STONE would focus to much on the conflict and not enough on the science. And the next few episodes, 2 and 3, help alleviated that. We got a good focus on humanity, some scientific progress, the sort of thing you want out of Dr. STONE. But these past two episodes we are starting to see it slide back down the science slope. We’re starting to burn through science scenes, such as the quick upgrading of the Steam Gorilla with its new wheels and such, in favor of progressing the conflict more and more. My favorite bits like the humanity aren’t totally gone, and Senku got to showoff the paper shield a bit. Just not as much as I’d like.

Continue reading “Dr. STONE S2 – 5 [STEAM GORILLA]” →