Category: Runway de Waratte

Welcome all to the finale of Runway de Waratte! This week we see Ayano Toh’s show, find out the winner of the event and once more get to watch pretty girls cry. So if that’s your idea of a good time, lets jump right in.

Right off the bat, I have to come out and say it, I found this finale to be pretty “meh”. Compared to last week, Toh’s show just lacked any sort of real impact. It was presented in an almost matter of fact nature, compared to Kokoro or Ikuto’s more emotional ones. Runway tried to shock us with Toh’s formatting, but I don’t think it really works. Sending out 2 models at a time, or starting with a t-shirt, might have worked had it been the opening of the show. But after Ikuto’s performance of closing with such a simple outfit, or Kokoro’s incredibly emotional show, Toh’s feels like a footnote. It’s like last week was our finale, and this was more of an epilogue tying up loose ends. I just found it dull, all the while one of the worst music choices of the show played over it.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 12 [This Is My Story]” →

This was a very surprising week of Runway de Waratte. I fully expected it to be a disappointment, to somehow screw up its grand finale, for Ikuto to ruin it… and none of that happened. It was surprisingly good. Not flawless, but probably the best episode of the show yet. Why? Well let’s jump in and find out.

Now, before I get all sappy and praise Runway, I want to talk about what it could do better. Specifically I want to talk about the animation of this week’s episode. Because while what we got is fine, I can’t help but think it could have been amazing. Runway had a huge opportunity this week with Chiyuki’s dress changes and walks to really show off its source material and subject. It could have shown us the dress changes in real time, animating the clothes being removed and add. We could have seen the difference in how Chiyuki walks by how its animated, rather than just getting upper-body shots. Instead though, we just the same presentation as we have for any other scene in the anime. Instead of being an event for the series… it was just another episode. And while its a good episode, ultimately, I am a little disappointed.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 11 [The Promise]” →

Apologies for the wait on this one everyone, between Evangelion reviews and this virus, it’s been busy! As far as Runway de Waratte goes, this week was actually… surprisingly competent. Not perfect, the first half was a bit of a wash. But for once something Ikuto was involved in *didn’t suck*. So without further ado, lets dive in!

Like I said, the second half of Runway this week wasn’t half bad. Ikuto’s fashion show worked. The outfits, while clearly not my style, were interesting and his theme consistent. I could do without the various poorly thought out metaphors, or the constant “Mr.Perfect” praise. But compared to what I was expecting to come out of his fashion show, it all actually fit together. The way Runway spelled out the expected order of the countries and how clear his theme was worked. And the the finale on the minimalist outfit was an unexpected surprise. Had Runway built all of this up, the characters, the families, everything, it could have been phenomenal. As is it’s just this sorta bright spot in an otherwise lackluster series. Still, next week is Chiyuki so we may have something to look forward to there.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 10 [Must Not Lose]” →

Hello everyone and welcome to another week of Runway de Waratte! Apologies, but this one is going to be a short one. I just don’t have much to say about what was a pretty meh episode. So without further ado, let’s dive in!

Right off the bat, I have to say, this was a very non-episode episode. What I mean by that is that Runway didn’t really do anything new or different this week. There was no meaningful reveal or change from what is already a pretty standard shounen formula. And that isn’t to say a standard formula is necessarily bad. Kimetsu no Yaiba was one of the most standard Shounen’s of last year, but I loved it because it was competent. Runway’s problem is that it goes for a similar formula, yet it has none of the competence that Yaiba did. The stakes are either low or non-existent and there is never any real concern that Ikuto will lose. Meanwhile as a character Ikuto is very bog-standard in his actions. So when I say that Runway gave us more of the same, I mean that you could have predicted it last week.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 9 [Rivals]” →

Another week, another dash of Runway de Waratte. However this week wasn’t actually that bad, as Ikuto is finally challenged, even if the pacing is a goddamn mess. So without further ado, lets jump into Runway!

Starting off, I want to talk about story structure for abit, because Runway failed miserably at it this week. You see, normally in a story you want to introduce a problem that challenges your character. One that forces them to grow, change and improve so as to tackle that problem. If you have an outside force, someone completely different, solve that problem then your lead character learns nothing. They don’t grow, they don’t change, they just exist and problems are solved for them. It leads to a terribly uncompelling narrative. Especially when you introduce said problem and then solve it in the same episode. No buildup, no challenge, no progression or rise and fall. Just “Here is a problem” and “Here is an easy solution”. Basically what I am trying to say diplomatically here is that Runway’s pacing this week was shit, and everyone knows it.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 8 [The Designer’s Capacity]” →

Runway de Waratte did it again, doing great with half the episode and falling apart in the 2nd. It’s a shame that a show can have such a compelling character in Chiyuki, and such a boring on in Itsuko. Still, no use whining without proof, lets dive in! And apologies for the wait, I was guesting on the r/anime awards livestream and that took up some time.

First up, the good, which is mostly Chiyuki. Seriously, Chiyuki is the best character in this show. Everything that is wrong with Itsuko is good with her and her story. We need only look at this episode for proof. Throughout the first half, Chiyuki actively faces challenges and discrimination. Runway doesn’t just tell us that short models have it tough, but actively shows us. With Hasegawa’s manager putting her down, the client putting her in the back, etc. We actively see her struggle to get work, passing out her card and doing her best to network. She brings multiple sized heels and sells herself based on the contents of the shot. All the while not being so proud as to whine about the work like the other models. None of this even really goes into her character, which is great.

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 7 [Aura]” →

Apologies for the wait everyone, but between cons and going rock climbing over the weekend, this got pushed back. Sadly though, I have to be honest, right out the gate, I wasn’t a fan of this weeks Runway de Waratte. As this week we have an idiotic fashion school competition, Itsuko being perfect and Chiyuki being the best part of the show. So without further ado, let’s just get into it.

Right off the bat, I want to talk about what I believe Runway’s biggest problem is, and that’s Itsuko. Supposedly, based on the OP and how the show opens, Chiyuki is our lead. Yet the focus is largely on Itsuko and his “struggles”, and it’s just not good. I don’t believe his struggles, his trials, I don’t believe that he overcomes them or that its difficult for him. We see time and again characters reference his living situation and how hard it is for him to do what he wants. But Runway never shows us this, we never see his challenge. He worries about money, but we never see him have to make tough choices with money. We hear about how difficult it is to design a dress, yet he got over it between episodes. The hardest Runway has ever been was the fashion show, and mostly for the assistant!

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 6 [Superiority and Inferiority]” →

Apologies for the wait everyone, but inspiration takes times, as Runway de Waratte taught us this week!

Runway starts off the week with Kokoro and Itsuko having a bit of a heart to heart. Talking about their dreams, why they want to become designers, etc etc. I actually think Runway does a decent job with Kokoro this week, as it jumps from that to Itsuko starting the competition, to getting Kokoro involved as well. And the way Runway got her involved was exactly what I wanted from the show. A look into the Modeling industry and how it practices. As we see that her agency is basically shutting down her dreams to keep her as a Model. Doing what is best for them, rather than what she wants, controlling her. Effectively locking her into a career because of how she was born. This is the kind of hard hitting look and critique of the fashion industry that could have made Runway great. Instead we get…

Continue reading “Runway de Waratte – 5 [Individual Styles]” →

Everyone, we are now 1/3rd of the way through Runway De Waratte and I have to say… It ain’t great. There might be a few issues, just a few I promise. Such as the family drama that starts and ends within 5 minutes. Or the genius rival, or maybe just everyone standing around like stiff cardboard. All that side though, it’s great! So let’s dive in.

Starting off, and I know it can get annoying with how often we talk about it, Runway’s Production. Now, sometimes, it can look alright. The fashion show last week made decent use of lighting and direction to focus in Chiyuki. Much like an actual fashion show would, with everything around her dimmed. Most of the time though, such as this week, everyone just looks…flat. Lifeless. Like stiff cardboard, stuck in the same positions across scenes. There is no life to them, they all stand straight backed and immovable. It reminds me of Irregular at Magic Highschool, except without the excuse of complex character designs. Where the only thing ever moving in many scenes are the mouths, which are disturbingly small. Simply put, Runway is not interesting or engaging to watch, visually, at all. There is no aesthetic draw to the series, and the narrative doesn’t help much either.

Continue reading “Runway De Waratte – 4 [Young Talents]” →