Dr.STONE – 21 [Spartan Crafts Clubs]

by Lenlo, posted in Dr.STONE

Welcome one and all to Dr.STONE and my first post on the new site! I hope its working well for anyone, and if you have any issues, please leave a comment somewhere. We want to make it the best we can. That said, let’s get into the episode.

So really quick, lets run through Dr.STONE production this week. There were a number of picturesque scenes throughout I feel. From the Christmas tree to the dawn of the New Year. Like always, I think Dr.STONE pulls these off well. Instilling a good amount of emotion into what are otherwise pretty basic shots. Something about the music, the framing and the characters all comes together to make them greater than they otherwise would be. The big thing though from this week I think is actually how the science is presented. As we are starting to get into very small things, science which requires precision. Unlike the water wheel or the generator or even the ramen stand, the lightbulbs and such are to small to really show off building. At least to do so easily I feel. So I think Dr.STONE did a fine job depicting scale and precision here. Continue reading “Dr.STONE – 21 [Spartan Crafts Clubs]” →

Welcome to Star Crossed Anime!

by SuperWooper, posted in About, Other:

Hey there! You’ve managed to find the new incarnation of psgels.net, one of the oldest surviving English language anime blogs on the web. Though our history may be long, we’re always looking forward, as seasonal anime is the bread and butter of our site. Here you’ll find episodic reviews of currently airing shows (plus weekly installments of Throwback Thursday), quarterly season previews, first impressions of new series as they premiere in Japan, and yearly rundowns of our favorite anime – 2019’s is just around the corner!

Whether you’re coming from psgels or you’re new to Star Crossed, we appreciate your readership. Let us know you’re here with a comment below, or by sounding off in the shoutbox to the right. Though we’re in the midst of a busy holiday season, new content will start appearing on the site very soon. Anime is a ride that never stops running, and neither do we – the new era of Star Crossed Anime begins now!

Hoshiai no Sora – 07

by SuperWooper, posted in Finished Series: Sports, Hoshiai no Sora

This episode was a tale of two halves in my view, but there’s no good tennis metaphor that I can use as a comparison, so a direct explanation will have to do. Essentially, I found the first half (the conclusion of Maki and Toma’s doubles match) to be a dull affair, while the team barbecue during the B part reignited my interest in the series. Hoshiai no Sora established itself as a character drama from its very first outing, and with so many unresolved anxieties still to address within Shijo’s tennis club, the recent emphasis on sports has generated mixed results. No such issues arise, however, when the show sits a bunch of people around a table to converse about their lives (the food is just a pretext).

Continue reading “Hoshiai no Sora – 07” →

Neon Genesis Evangelion – 3 [The Silent Phone/A Transfer] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Throwback Thursday

Another week, another episode of Neon Genesis Evangelion, possibly the last one before the site move. A nice dash for finality, I think. As this week Evangelion continues to explore Shinji’s mental state, what living in this world is like, and a dash of exposition. Lets dive in!

Starting off, this was the first episode of Evangelion to not wow me. Don’t get me wrong, it looked fine, but compared to the first two it was pretty static. For instance we saw the general 90’s explosions of simple circles overlaid onto the object itself. Or the same repeating image of the Angel in the fight at the end. Flashing back and forth as the characters count down. Or Shinji’s face during it all, with heavy red filters and such. I understand the attempt, what it was going for there, but for me it felt almost… overdone? At least when combined with the screaming and other noises going on at the time. Still, its not like it was bad, there is still a good amount of direction and decent cuts going on here. It just feels like all the good cuts will be limited to the Eva is all.

Continue reading “Neon Genesis Evangelion – 3 [The Silent Phone/A Transfer] – Throwback Thursday” →

Chihayafuru S3 – 07 [The Storm Blasts]

by SuperWooper, posted in Chihayafuru, Finished Series: Sports

I’ve positively loved the last five episodes of Chihayafuru’s third season, so I don’t derive any pleasure from saying that I kind of hated this one. “The Storm Blasts,” in my eyes, makes an unwise narrative choice to achieve a convenient result, and creates a minefield of non-credibility for the show going forward. Though it’s this episode I’ll be criticizing here, Madhouse’s adaptation is perfectly faithful to Suetsugu-sensei’s manga, so her plotting is the thing that actually troubles me. The mechanical aspects of the anime are great, as usual, but the issue of Chihaya attending her class trip has implications beyond delaying her run at the Queen title by a year. Hit the jump if you’re interested in a breakdown of why that is.

Continue reading “Chihayafuru S3 – 07 [The Storm Blasts]” →

Psycho-Pass 3 – 04 [Political Strife in the Colosseum]

by HelghastKillzone, posted in Currently Watching:, Psycho-Pass 3

Sibyl isn’t everything but episode four has me nearly convinced with its balance of investigation, action, and social commentary that it is on par with the first season of Psycho-Pass. Wrapping up this case answers the case’s immediate questions like what makes Komina tick, but only more questions crop up like who is the First Inspector and what is Bifrost’s ultimate goal. With the season already half over, its beg the question of how they intend to wrap up all the plot points from this and previous seasons. Continue reading “Psycho-Pass 3 – 04 [Political Strife in the Colosseum]” →

Vinland Saga – 18 [Out of the Cradle]

by Lenlo, posted in Vinland Saga

Ah it’s good to be back after a weeks break, as Vinland Saga gives us another fantastic episode. This week sees Thorfinn fight for Askeladd’s life. Meanwhile Canute kills the boy so that the man may live. Lot’s to talk about, so let’s dive in!

Starting off, I have to comment on how Vinland Saga looked this week. It was downright fantastic, both in terms of animation and style. For the first bit we of course had Thorfinn vs Thorkell, with some Bjorn on the side. There is a lot to love here and only so much space, so lets rattle some off. There was the use of slow motion throughout the fight, combined with the snow. Or the dynamic animation throughout, or the effects of snow and wood. Clearly Wit knew how important this episode was, similar to episode 14. On the artistic side we had some beautiful landscapes and framing throughout Canute’s segment. With the sky and snow being rendered fantastically, and when combined with Vinland Saga’s backgrounds, becomes stunning. I think the “perfection in death” sequence is one of the best examples of it here. Still this is all obvious, onto story.

Continue reading “Vinland Saga – 18 [Out of the Cradle]” →