Welcome to the NHK – 9/10 [Welcome to Summer Days!/Welcome to the Dark Side!] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Throwback Thursday, Welcome to the NHK

Welcome everyone, to what will no doubt be a late week of Welcome to the NHK! I apologize for that, I’ve been playing a bit to much Path of Exile this week and I’ve shirked my duties a bit. Don’t worry though, I’ll get over this obsession soon… I hope. Now on with the show!

This week lets skip the preamble and jump right in with episode 9, “Welcome to Summer Days!”. This was an interesting one, because it was a Yamazaki centric episode. And if I can be honest, it’s more than I thought Yamazaki was ever going to get. My mistake, I know, but I kind of thought NHK would be all about Sato. That it would be using him as a comparison point to all of the other characters, rather than giving them their own solo-stories. More the fool I, huh? My own stupidity aside, I really like what NHK did here. It didn’t just present Yamazaki as this pitiable fool, rather it showed us how he got to be the way he is. And just how easy it would be for him to escape it had he the will. Not to dissimilar to Sato, huh? Spoilers after the break!

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Dance Dance Danseur Anime Review 86/100

by Lenlo, posted in Anime Reviews, Dance Dance Danseur, Finished Series: Romance, Reviews by Lenlo

Everyone has a type. Whether it be fighting games, Shounen battle anime, even who they like to date. Everyone has something that they can point to and say “I like that, give me more”. Well after 450 anime, after Welcome to the Ballroom, Princess Tutu and so much more, I think I’ve figured out one of mine: Fancy dancing. And after this season, I think I can narrow it down even more: Ballet dancing. The entire aesthetic is something I can’t get enough of. And it’s thanks to the subject of this review, my favorite anime of the Spring 2022 season, that I figured that out. Produced at Studio MAPPA, originally created by George Asakura, Directed by Munehisa Sakai of Zombie Land Saga with music by Michiru I give to you: Dance Dance Danseur. Let’s jump into it.

Be warned, this review contains minor unmarked spoilers for Dance Dance Danseur. It also contains major spoilers in some sections, but these will be heavily marked to avoid accidents. Continue reading “Dance Dance Danseur Anime Review 86/100” →

Dance Dance Danseur – 11 [Oh, I Think I Love Classical Ballet]

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Dance Dance Danseur

This is it everyone, welcome to the finale of Dance Dance Danseur! This is a pretty eventful week all things considered. Someone gets the girl while another gets a scholarship, all the while a dementia ridden grandmother laughs along at the drama. So the question is: Is it any good? Let’s jump in and find out.

First up lets talk about the visuals. If you ask me, these are a bit of mixed bag. The first half was absolutely gorgeous. Like legitimately beautiful, I don’t think anyone can dispute that. The lighting, Luou’s movements, how it was all framed and storyboarded. Great stuff. However the second half leaves much to be desired, both in animation and storyboarding. Part of this no doubt comes down to the location. There’s no way a static classroom provides the same kind of scenery and options that a beach at sunset does. Beyond that, we also need to recognize that MAPPA problem: Melt. MAPPA has a history of productions falling apart in the second half, it’s just a fact. And we saw a bit of that as if you check the credits, this episode has 13 different studios working on it. I’m amazed it came out as good as it did.

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Welcome to the NHK – 7/8 [Welcome to the Moratorium!/Welcome to Chinatown!] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Throwback Thursday, Welcome to the NHK

Hello everyone, and welcome back to another 2 episodes of Welcome to the NHK! This week Sato manages to surprise me, Hitomi makes a small return and Misaki finally gets an episode all about her. Was it all good, another pair of winners? Yes! Was it positive progress for Sato? Not really. Lets jump in and talk about that.

It’s absolutely amazing to me how easily NHK can make me go from being proud of Sato to disgusted by him, to pitying him. All while keeping him an interesting, engaging and all around good character. And that’s because Sato is disgusting, he is pitiful, and he is still a good person who is trying to be better. Seriously, just last week I was praising him for going outside! For expressing himself and taking care of his friend rather than tear him down! Yet not one episode later Sato is wrapping himself up in another grand lie. It’s like he can’t help himself. He has these expectations for himself, ones that he assumes everyone else has for him to, and hates that he isn’t reaching them. So he feels like he has to lie or else people won’t care for him anymore. It’s sad. Yet I still like him.

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Spy X Family – 10 [The Great Dodgeball Plan]

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Spy X Family

Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of SpyXFamily. I have a treat for you this week. Remember episode 5, and how like… 80% of it was anime original? Turning a single chapter into this whole event? Well it’s happened again. And once again, it’s pretty good. So lets dive into it.

Just like with episode 5, I think this week is another example of what a good adaptation looks like. Because just like episode 5, this week SpyXFamily took a single chapter and expanded on it. The core idea of the dodgeball game? Some small training with Yor, Bill existing? That was all there originally. But the extended sequence in the park? Bill’s little segment with his father? The combo attacks and references? Not to mention all of the little animation upgrades to really enhance the jokes? That’s all new! It feels so much like the staff were allowed to have fun while creating this episode. Like people were just pitching ideas, “How can we fill this time in a fun way”, and then they went and did them. Don’t believe me? Well lets talk about a few of those fun ideas.

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Dance Dance Danseur – 10 [Miyako… You Need to Be by His Side]

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Dance Dance Danseur

Hello everyone, and welcome to another week of Dance Dance Danseur! And what a week it was. This episode was just so GOOD. I was worried that Danseur might flub it’s ending, but this penultimate episodes makes me sure that won’t happen. Why is that? Well lets jump in and talk about it.

Right off the bat, and as if this comes as any surprise, Danseur’s direction this week was stellar. There were so many incredible frames that I had trouble picking my screenshots for this post. Whether it be the almost fairytale portrayal of Luou’s small door, or the beginnings of Swan Lake on the beach, Danseur hits hard when its wants to. Now sure, there were some hiccups here and there. The transition from the train to Jumpei/Miyako running on the beach was awkward, as was the composite of them running in the background. Danseur wasn’t perfect. But it was beautiful. Like in the way that flaws in a masterpiece remind you that it was made by a human, rather than a machine, is all the more perfect for it. Now maybe Danseur isn’t masterpiece. But it is without question my Anime of the Season.

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Welcome to the NHK – 5/6 [Welcome to Counselling!/Welcome to the Classroom!] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Throwback Thursday, Welcome to the NHK

Hello and welcome back everyone, to another week of Welcome to the NHK! This is another really interesting week, we have a lot to talk about. From Sato meeting his Senpai to Yamazaki getting a girlfriend, this is a good week for NHK. So lets jump right into it!

Like I said in the intro, this was a pretty interesting week of NHK for me. Not the least because it’s moving at a much faster pace than I had previously expected. Remember last week when I talked about where I expected NHK to go? That this game might last us through an entire cour, how maybe we will go the entire show without signing the contract? Well NHK heard that and took personal offense it seems, because both basically happened in a single episode. It makes me wonder just how far NHK is going to take its premise. How much of the cast remains to be introduced, what kind of problems will Sato, Misaki and Yamazaki have moving forward. Because it feels like what I expected to last us the entire show barely made it 6 episodes. And if I’m being honest? That’s kind of exciting.

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Spring 2022 Check-In – Weeks 7-9

by SuperWooper, posted in Weekly Summary

Wooper: I’ve never felt that the phrase “weekly summary” accurately described this column, and now that I’m a rogue writer who shows up whenever he feels like it, I’m going with “check-in” and damn the consequences. This check-in post is too early to catch Hisuian Snow’s second episode (airing tomorrow) or the start of the Spriggan ONA (June 18th), but they’ll be in the next one, which ought to appear around the time that the Summer Preview gets pinned. See you then!

Pokemon: Hisuian Snow 1

There have been a bunch of worthwhile Pokemon shorts in the past few years, but the best of them is undoubtedly 2020’s Twilight Wings, the art direction of which far outstripped most TV anime from that year. With Hisuian Snow, Wit Studio aims to match that effort from Studio Colorido, and based on this short first episode they might just succeed. It’s set in the mountainous Hisui region, which I know nothing about, but you don’t need to be current with the franchise as a whole to appreciate how pretty this six minute short looks; the combination of the snowy peaks and the setting sun bathes the whole production in warm colors, from gentle yellows to harsh oranges. That contrast emphasizes what looks to be the story’s main idea – that Pokemon are beautiful but dangerous – alongside some “humans and Pokemon can never coexist” dialogue from the main character’s father. That’s not a sentiment you typically get from the franchise, and although it’s obviously set up to be disproven by the bond between a young boy and a wild Zorua, there’s room for Hisuian Snow to tiptoe into frightening territory before its feel-good finish. Still, the main reason to watch is the art, which I’ll stress again is excellent – you can see for yourself by watching the first installment [here].

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Spy X Family – 9 [Show Off How in Love You Are]

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Spy X Family

Hello everyone, and welcome to another week of SpyXFamily! If you read the Danseur post then you know I’ve been a bit tired this week, so this was a bit late. Still, the show must go on! So without further ado, lets jump into the episode!

Starting off with the bad news, this episode was… I really liked last weeks Yuri, right? He wasn’t to much, not to little, just enough to bring something new to the cast dynamics. His sis-con nature was enough of an excuse for him to be simultaneously suspicious of Loid while also distracted. It was all the justification we needed to make his interactions work. But this week? I feel like SpyXFamily took it a bit to far. His sis-con nature wasn’t amusing anymore, it was creepy and controlling. His whole flashback about wanting to marry Yor was just a step to far. And that’s kind of the whole episode in a nutshell if I’m being honest. The comedy was subsumed by these more… Serious? That isn’t the right word, maybe concerning, narrative threads. What do I mean? Well lets take a look at Loid.

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Dance Dance Danseur – 9 [I Wanna Get Better, Too!]

by Lenlo, posted in Currently Watching:, Dance Dance Danseur

Welcome everyone, to another week of Dance Dance Danseur! Apologies for the wait on this one. I haven’t stopped, just been rather busy since I started grad school and its left me feeling a bit more tired than expected. Excuses aside though, lets jump right into this weeks episode!

This was an interesting week, as we seem to be coming to a head on both Jumpei and Luou’s stories. Or at least this arc of them. Jumpei’s is going about as I expected, he’s been offered the scholarship by Oikawa and must now choose between her and Chizuru. About what I predicted right? But there’s an added layer here from Danseur that I wasn’t expecting: Natsuki and Miyako. I said last week that I wasn’t expecting any kind of romance to happen this season, but now we have a full blown triangle situation. And on top of that, they both seem to represent something different in the story. Like Miyako is personal expression, feelings, romantic love and everything we saw Jumpei exhibit in the Swan Lake performance. Meanwhile Natsuki seems to almost represent the institution of ballet itself, the ideal Jumpei seems to be striving towards. It’s… interesting.

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