Thunderbolt Fantasy 2 – 10 [Demonic Swords/Holy Swords]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Thunderbolt Fantasy

This week, Thunderbolt takes a left turn to resolve side conflicts, or even new minor conflicts it thought of, mostly to boost up the status of our main cast. It’s still enjoyable, in an admittedly predictable way. We have a guy literally flirting with his sword, a yaoi love where a guy willing to put his life at stake to save his partner, and a backstab where we have this ridiculous line as a climax: “These are… swords!!!!!”. First off, I hope Enigmatic Gale scheme against Dirty Cop goes beyond this humiliation as it’s underwhelming at best. It’s true that it takes guts for him to trick the Dirty Cop in a factor that he was most confident in: his special glasses. It’s the scheme goes right in front of his eyes, but he’s too arrogant to realize the trick. Freak-out Dirty Cop is nice and all, but I hope this is only a warning from Gui Liao.

Lang Wu Yao, on the other hand, is on his way to the suicide mission. This must show how much he cares (in an unhealthy way, that is) for Shang Bu Huan since I don’t see the reason why they would just join forces to beat the enemy. Isn’t two head is always better than one? This leaves Shang Bu Huan the opportunity to sneak out to his other boyfriend, Gui Niao. The moment I see the man having enough time and pleasure to go fishing again with the glasses on no less, it gives me such joy.

Finally, Di Kong, under a new alias Lou Zhen Jie, basically goes through episode talking about how much devotion he is with his sword, and further demonstrates how he isn’t necessary a vessel under her power. I must say the subplot regarding these guys from the Sen Chin Fortress a bit unimportant, especially at this late in a game. But it does offer an interesting scenario: the holy swords wielded by these guys versus this massive evil sword. I’m a bit disappointed that Seven Blasphemous Deaths loses its cool the moments it sees its krypnotye – by her power it should be more excited the more powerful the opponent has. But the Fallen Monk proves once again he doesn’t need the power of the sword to triumph, as he destroys the holy swords by his bare hands. The only take out from this turn of event is that it isn’t the sword, but Di Kong himself, will prove to be the final threat for Shang Bu Huan and the gang. Hopefully, Enigmatic Gale finds someway to be relevant with this feud as well. He’s hardy connected to the main plot, given he himself hasn’t met Di Kong, nor the Evil Sword, onscreen at all.

Zombieland Saga – 07-09[But It’s Zombiemental SAGA/Go Go Neverland SAGA/Though My Life May Have Ended Once by Some Twist of Fate I Have Risen, and If Song and Dance Are to Be My Fate, Then Carrying the Memories of My Comrades in My Heart as I Sally Forth Shall Be My SAGA]

by AidanAK47, posted in Currently Watching:, Zombieland Saga

Zombieland Saga is a confusing show to me. It’s been on a decline since episode 3 which it chucked out it’s rather unpredictable but beautifully chaotic nature for what seems to be a formula closer and more sincere of an idol show. It’s jumping between modes wherein the show can be wacky and surreal yet wants you to take it seriously. Mizuno was struck by lightning while performing, which is absurd yet the story treats her trauma regarding lightning very seriously. Miyu is a trap who died from shock after finding a chin hair, yet the anime treats his death with absolute genuine heartbreak with it even hinting that while his/her death may be silly the circumstances of overwork and mental stress leading up to it most certainly were not. Meanwhile Saki died from playing a game of chicken and driving off a cliff yet the effect on her best friend appears to be a deep rooted trauma. These elements cannot coexist as they just clash too much for it’s hard to truly feel the sadness of the situation when the nercomanager can just pop in and Hououin Kyouma it up to high heaven.

I miss the freestyle performances and while the lightning giving them magic autotune was rather novel, I just find these idol performances to be poor replacements for the creativity of the first two episodes. The only saving grace is that they have appeared to abandon CGI for 2D performances which may be less animated but at least don’t detract from the experience. I am disappointed that Zombieland ultimately went the route of glorifying the idol industry while ignoring it’s dirty underbelly of exploitation. They made one joke about how the girls being undead meant that they can literally be worked to death without worry but other than that it’s been the usual piel of idols giving people hopes and dreams with all the sugar coated nonsense. I thought the girls encountering old relations would bring some new interest to the series but sadly they have decided to have the girls keep things secret and pretend to be unrelated. I still advocate that the show isn’t bad but if the beginning episodes were a 9/10 then we have dropped down to a 6/10.

At this point the zombie thing has become a bit of a gimmick while the show has more or less begun to follow idol show formula of having an individual episode on each girl coupled with a character song. Sure in this case the girls episodes generally have to due with their untimely passing but overall the episodic nature has made the show more predictable. We know that manager is going to have a scene where he pep talks the team, we know there’s going to be an idol song, we know that each episode is going to focus on a specific girl. At this point the only things keeping this show going is the small jokes it nails and the mystery regarding just what Tatsumi’s goal or motives are in all this. And I have to say that I am not quite interested enough in those things to be heavily invested here.

Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara – 09 [Wandering Words]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Irozuku Sekai no Ashita kara

Another episode, and my disappointment keeps raising up. Irozuku has come to the point where it has to creates its own conflict (all these romance drama), but it’s the development that we already tracked down back in episode 2, and it does a poor job of convincing us to care about these characters. This is all about Shou’s confession this week. Predictably, Hitomi freaks out; predictably, she finds the courage to say no to him and predictably, here he is at the rooftop, screaming his heart out in a typical anime fashion. Irozuku is a show that has solid themes, and has great visual to boost but it has no proper plot to carry the narrative. As a result, more often than not we see the cast doing their usual club activities that could easily interchange with each other, and worse the cast functions more as a single united mind, where passively supporting Hitomi is their default mode.

I blame Hitomi’s insensitive nature in all this. She’s not only clueless about Shou’s interest in her, but she also doesn’t take hint about Asagi’s crush and talks to her about it instead. Great job, Hitomi. So, Shou takes Hitomi out alone for a shooting session, and clumsily (the reason I put it that way is because Irozuku messes up the pacing in this confession scene) asks her out, in which she does the worst possible way, running away from all that. It’s hard to say no to the guy she always looks up to, and it’s also an opportunity for her to really knows who she likes better. Speaking of that person, Aio is a real mess here as he does absolutely nothing, he doesn’t put up a fight, nor does he acknowledge that he also has a feeling for Hitomi. After the rejection, Aio admires Shou for having a ball to confess, and receive rejection and his courage to crying out loud. Both Hitomi and Aoi have a problem of truly expressing themselves, and I figure that the final arc to be them embracing their own feeling to confess to each other.

Not that it’s a high stake to begin with. But for a show that quite literally nothing happens (a criticism that I don’t give very often), it’s a realistic reach for Irozuku. As it stands, I could compress this show into half, or even ⅓ of its length (which is a feature-length film), and it could strengthen the show much better. Irozuku has a clear beginning point A and finishing point B, but it doesn’t know a clear path to go from one point to its destination, so that it wanders around, with a magic wand in one hand and camera in the other, taking aimlessly monochrome pictures as it goes along.

SSSS.GRIDMAN – 09 [Dream]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, SSSS.GRIDMAN

Before this episode, I was thinking that it must take a full bag of magic to make me care about Akane, being an irredeemable bitch as she is. Episode 9 did just that, and then some, in its own fashion no less. It’s by the strength of its visual storytelling that show us how desperate she wants our characters to like her, and how ultimately let-down when she fails to do it. With a show that is so strong about its visual identity, a bus full of passengers suddenly feels off. What is a better way of displaying Akane hitting rock bottom (and her God-like power) than this single sequence? I can’t remember the last time I see the image and sound of the train crossing line symbols each dream segment? Heck, this episode is on its way to be my favorite GRIDMAN’s episode so far, and that says a lot. Not only it flirts around with dream/reality boundary that is one of my jam, it also deepens Akane’s narrative in most unexpected way.

The most genius part for me happens right in the beginning, when Yuuta wakes up and finds Akane in Rikka’s home. It’s a rehearse to the premiere with Akane now is in place of Rikka, and acts in a total Akane-way. That sequence is more screwing with us audience than it does with a confused Yuuta, since we have a knowledge that this happened before. The same things happen the same with Shou and Rikka, as they meet Akane in their separate dreams and can’t get out of such dreams. It’s masterful of GRIDMAN to start all the dream sequences in Yuuta, Shou and Rikka’s point of views, respectively, before pulls out to reveal that they are tangled in Akane’s manipulation. As for their dreams, it’s interesting to note that, while with Shou and Rikka, Akane choses the moments when she is alone with them in the “real timeline” – or put it better, the timeline where we has been following – with Yuuta, it’s the beginning where Yuuta wakes up from his amnesia, with the knowledge that normally Akane can’t possibly know. This detail further confirms that 1) Akane is indeed the goddess of the world we have been following, and that like our Hero team comes to suspect, that world might be entirely Akane’s dream to escape the real world and 2) unlike his friends Shou and Rikka, Yuuta might no be a real person. He has no memory before the event to begin with, which makes him a boy without a past.

But it’s interesting that as hard as she wants her followers to wordship her, the three comes to their sense because they reject this ideal world. “It’s all too good to be true”, Shou said that at one point. Yuuta looks at his reflection over the tomb he and Akane visit, which the kanji characters form into his tear, Rikka push stop button when she wants to get out of the dream – the moments speak more powerful than any conventional mean, and fittingly they cut to Akane’s pride the deepest. The more desperation she tries, the harder they pull out. The harder the pull out, the bigger blow she receives. I also enjoy Gridman’s reflections towards every single reflective things out main cast see. Those sequences, where Akane standing on top of the giant crane, above everyone but ultimately alone, best summarize her own struggles towards creating the perfect world, and fails to convert the people that she cares the most.

While the main plot of kaiju vs Gridman takes a backseat this week, they still offer plenty of fresh take on that formula. It’s the first time that this kaiju works in more… deceptive way. The kaiju puts Yuuta, Shou and Rikka to sleep and keep them hostage in their own dreams. What makes it all the more dangerous is that it can be seen, but can’t be touched by this realm of reality. It’s the first time where the Squad forms a version of themselves without the main host, Gridman, and it further reveals that Anti is more than just a regular kaiju. Now that I think about it, Anti might not be Akane’s creation and he’s more along the same line with the kaiju girl that Yuuta met in previous episodes. The animation, in addition, really bring the characters to light. It’s one of the rare time where both the animation and character design (especially Rikka) are looser than normal, hence the movement is much more expressive. From what I heard, this episode is storyboarded by Kai Ikarash, a newbie but the quality certainly has my attention. There’s just too many alternative routes GRIDMAN can take at this moment, and I mean it in the best possible way since for while some time that I feel this intriguing about a show at this stage: both revealing just about enough thematic depth, at the same time as vague and open as ever for more surprises on the horizon.

Banana Fish – 20 & 21 [The Unvanquished/The Undefeated]

by Lenlo, posted in Banana Fish, Finished Series: Slice of Life/Drama

Hello and welcome to Banana Fish! Apologies for missing last week, but the call of Thanksgiving Turkey could not be denied. This time Eiji fires a gun, Max gets groped, and Ash gets captured. Again. Lets jump in!

To start off, I have to mention it, the elephant in the room, the pacing. My god was the pacing fast. Early on in the series, this was a plus. It never felt like nothing was happening. But the pacing has only increased since then, as we burn through more and more volumes. Episode 20 alone we went from Ballroom Infiltration, to Sewer Chase, to Museum Fight, to prepping a new villain. At the least this should have been split into 2 episodes, so the leads could have time to cooldown between these set pieces. For me, this really hurt these two episodes. Banana Fish was jumping from cut to cut, scene to scene, without any artistry put into it. The tone broke down because of this and became a jumbled mess. Fast is good Banana Fish, but only if you stay in control. And in control, it was not.

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Planetes – 13 & 14 [Scenery with a Rocket/Turning Point] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Planetes, Throwback Thursday

Welcome everyone to another, rather late, week of Planetes! Apologies for that, work has been busy this week. This time we get to meet everyone’s families, Hachimaki makes a move and Fee gets a new ship. Lets jump in!

So in general, I thought these two episodes were well put together. Nothing phenomenal, I didn’t break down weeping at any point. But it looked good, and the characters were used well. A perfect example of both for me is Hachimaki’s little brother, Kyuutarou. Animation wise, his time in the shed looked great. After the break you will find an image of him testing his rocket that I think stood out. The contrasting blacks, to make the shot look brighter than it is, all worked. As a character he also provided us a look into Hachimaki and a continuation of Yuri. Both of which I was glad for. Did it make me question things like Hachi’s time on the moon, or tear up like Yuri mourning his wife? No. But it was good nonetheless.

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Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru – 9 [Mismatched Runners]

by Lenlo, posted in Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru

Welcome one and all to another week of Kaze Fui! This week Haiji takes care of his team, the twin’s can’t keep a secret and Kurahara shows more growth sitting on the sidelines than some MC’s do in their pivotal moments. Lets jump in!

To start off, let this episode be proof of Kaze Fui’s Director’s skill. So much was conveyed purely through shot composition and framing. The entire track meet, with the angles, the focus on their expressions while running. Kurahara’s slow realization, showing us what he sees. I loved it. Definitely these details earn the Director a pat on the back. But to me, it also reflects well on Kaze Fui’s source material. To give the Director this much to work with. There is a clear difference in quality of writing it seems, between lite-novels and legitimate Novels. It helps that this is the same author who wrote Fune wo Amu, a personal favorite of mine the year it aired. She has a talent for writing realistic characters, who are more than just a bundle of personality traits slapped together. As proof, let’s look into some of those characters.

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Goblin Slayer – 06-08[Goblin Slayer in the Water Town/Onward Unto Death/Whispers and Prayers and Chants]

by AidanAK47, posted in Currently Watching:, Goblin Slayer

I know my coverage of this series has been quite sporadic(My coverage of anything this season has been rather lacking in general) and I can say that is in part due to my current work which has me less inclined to blog as I work enough as it is. But another part of not covering this all too well is also due to the simple fact that there really isn’t much to comment on here. Goblin Slayer the anime has lived up to it’s name of being about slaying goblins. But well, that’s it. The characters are pretty base though their interactions can be amusing and the plot mainly seems to be of GS slowly learning to warm up to people and his posse of adventurers going into dungeons to kill Goblins. That can be enough for people but for me I just find myself lacking interest for this is what this show is and this is what the show will be in the future. I just don’t see anything changing with the premise being what it is. As such while it is watchable, I don’t hold any strong feelings towards this series. not hate or love or much interest. I can stick it on, watch it for twenty minutes and leave without it having much of an impact. It’s popcorn really, something to have to pass the time but not having any real opinions or feeling towards.

For those who watched the crunchyroll broadcast you may be wondering just why episode 7 ended on a minute of a half of a birds eye starting at the screen. As it turns out that was supposed to be a credits roll but someone messed up at crunchyroll and had it blank with the normal ending tacked on. On this note, who here believed Goblin Slayer was dead? What? No one? Yeah, me neither. It’s not much of a cliffhanger to have the main character seemly die when he has plot armour considering that the show itself is named after him. I will admit that if he did die this would be a hell of a way to go out, going berserker on a goblin champion and scaring goblins so much that they all run terrified from him. The situation itself was certainly a lowest point for the party with high elf nearly raped, priestess getting a chuck ripped out of her and the guys…actually thinking of it Lizard and dwarf got off rather light in this engagement.

In episode 8 we see how Goblin slayer survived the encounter and it was one of those eye rolling moments that show Goblin Slayer’s light novel origins. He was revived with healing magic that basically required him to sleep sharing a bed with priestess and Sword Maiden. Sword Maiden was needed to cast the spell and Priestess was needed due to the spell requiring a virgin which Sword maiden wasn’t due to having been raped by goblins. My short time googling can’t confirm whether there is an actual D&D spell like this but honestly I found the whole scene just asininely pandering. Oh boy isn’t it cool that Goblin Slayer slept with two hot chicks in a bed last night? And now Sword Maiden is talking suggestively to him with nipples that could cut diamond. It was either cold as ice in that room or Goblin Slayer just emits an invisible aphrodisiac that it renders any woman weak in the knees. Overall i just found it distracting how Sword Maiden talks of being raped by monsters and her voice and the camera angles seem to be suggesting that I should be very turned on by this despite the content talking of how traumatised Sword Maiden is.

I do like that the treat of the goblins is mainly due to how much they distress Sword maiden who can fight demon lords and dragons no problem but is so deeply traumatized with her experience with goblins that she cannot relax knowing they are so close by. But it’s rather hard to take her seriously when while she is explaining it she rolls her hands down her chest causing her massive assets to jiggle. It’s a bit like watching a woman talk about her suicidal tendencies while pole dancing. Only other things I can mention is that it is rather novel for this show to have a beholder and refer to it as “The beast that must not be named” for that monster was one of the few that Wizards of the coast(D&D owners) copyrighted. And word is that they are pretty hard on enforcing that copyright so Goblin Slayer had to skirt around its name in other to not be sued. Also due to the shifting around of material a small plot hole has opened up but I suppose White Fox will skirt around that as well.

Thunderbolt Fantasy 2 – 09 [The Path of the Strong]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Thunderbolt Fantasy

As soon as our Princess Cruelty has her redemption moments, I immediately realize this might be the last we see of her. This proves to be the case, well, this is Thunderbolt world we’re talking about – the strong survives and the weak dies, but I believe Thunderbolt gives her characters just about enough growth. She had gone through one hell of a challenge as the prideful evil Sword berates her and nearly uses her blood as a sacrifice (well, it’s another kind of physical and mental abuse if you think about it). While her short duel with Shang Bu Huan doesn’t really change anything – she knows the guy is much stronger than her – I enjoy the moments in many ways. First, unlike Thunderbolt’s other duels so far this sword fight is short and sweet. It takes just one move for Shang Bu Huan to defeat the Princess. Second, like what Shang Bu Huan comments, it’s rather impressive that Princess Cruelty can shake off the evil sword and fight in her own will. She mentions how using the powerful sword makes her realize how weak she is, but in truth the person who can realize their own limitation goes a long way. Thunderbolt has always addressed the quest of becoming invincible by the means of swords, and this Cruelty plot further demonstrates this quality to great extend. You’ve done well, Cruelty.

In the other side of the battle, admittedly with a much lower stake, Dirty Cop ‘asks’ Gui Niao (not very nicely) to make a deal with him of swapping “stolen goods” and sell them with high price. Well, this Dirty Cop sure is corrupted, but points for him for stripping down all the pretense. Still, his puppet’s teeth gonna give me nightmare, I swear. Gui Niao is playing along with his scheme for now, but I won’t be surprised if the man is waiting for a right opportunity to turn the table.

And finally, the evil Sword has a new sword-wielder. Can’t say I’m surprised with this new turn of events, but I’m sure with the guy as amoral as this Monk, his combination with the Seven Blasphemous Deaths makes him a formidable threat. His new design is certainly awesome and moreover, it’s interesting to see how the evil sword and him will play out. This guy is not the type who can be easily controlled for sure, so whatever the case he will this sword: as a tool, or as a soulmate, or as a master, it remains to be seen. But I’m sure hyped for how Shang Bu Huan and his partner can overcome this powerful beast. The lesson Shang Bu Huan needs to learn here, is to listen to your goddamn partner, dude. This Ginger Singer knows best.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-San – 8 [Bookstores are so Wonderful!/The Shelves with and without Restrictions]

by Lenlo, posted in Finished Series: Comedy, Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-San

Hello everyone, I hope you had a good Thanksgiving! This week Honda-San is back in form, as we refocus on the customers. We see a cavalcade of book lovers, the terror of children, and a peek into the publishing life of Honda. Let’s dive in!

As I sad in the intro, Honda-San is back at it with the customer stories this week. Once again, it shows that these eccentric personalities are the strength of the show. I can’t say it was hilarious, I didn’t laugh out loud at any point in the episode. But it was consistently entertaining. I giggled from time to time and the stories were, if nothing else, interesting. I think a short series like Honda-San benefits from a rotating/perpetually new cast of side characters. This way our set leads can bounce off them and show something new each week, occasionally bouncing off of each other. Both segments had numerous new customers with their own quirks, and with how short the segments are, none overstayed their welcome. With how short the are on screen, they don’t have to be more than interesting caricatures.

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