Summer 2021 Weekly Summary – Week 3

Amun: Hello! I’m your new weekly summary host, Amun. I’m going to be trying a little something slightly new: adding reactions to each episode we watch for the week. So without further ado, how’s the season going so far?

Re-Main – 2

👏Wooper’s welcoming!👏

Wooper: There was no third episode of Re-Main yesterday due to a scheduling conflict with the British Open, though I doubt too many Western fans were put out by the change. This series is years behind modern hits like Haikyuu in terms of its obvious character types and occasionally jarring comedy. It’s still out here dangling a cute girl in front of its male lead for motivation like a 90s sports anime, for crying out loud. Re-Main doesn’t know that we’re living in 2021, but I wish I didn’t either, which might explain why I’m somewhat fond of it. The amnesiac protagonist trick might be an obvious ploy to create an audience surrogate, but Minato has a great attitude nonetheless. His fun-loving personality and desire to help others are balanced by self-doubt and resentment that people expect so much of him in the wake of his accident, creating a character (and a storyline) that are enjoyable to follow. The other water polo boys are much shallower by comparison, but the quick montage of their histories near the end of the episode read like the show’s promise to explore each of their motivations in turn. I doubt any of those explorations will match Minato’s, but as long as the attempt is wholehearted, it’ll fall nicely in line with Re-Main’s scrappy retro spirit.

Vanitas no Karte – 2-3

😐Wooper’s waning, Amun’s ambivalent.😐

Wooper: I’ve seen the last word of this series’ romanized title spelled two different ways – I’m sticking with “Karte,” since it lets me imagine the characters in a Mario-adjacent racing game. Unfortunately, that mental image is the most fun I’ve had with this show so far; had I been hooked up to an ECG machine while watching these episodes, my cardiovascular readout would have matched that of a vampire. I’ve got nobody to root for here, as frontmen Vanitas and Noe’s stylized overreactions and lapses into silly banter read like substitutes for specific personalities. The former’s stated goal of restoring the names of cursed vampires is admirable, but it’s also massive in scope, and the scripts so far haven’t pointed us in a particular direction where that mission is concerned. Granted, this is a two cour series, so time is on its side, but if a show is going to prioritize secondary antagonists and masquerade balls over its larger plot, it’s got to win me over visually at the very least. That hasn’t happened, either – I did get major Fire Force vibes from the framing of episode 3, which was a plus, but we didn’t come close to that project’s stunning animation. Vampire Kart isn’t a bad series, but neither is it as good as it ought to be given its pedigree, so I’m passing on the next 21 episodes.

Amun: I agree this is similar to Fire Force, but unlike other writers, I was there for all of that glorious mess, and I enjoyed it (mostly). I’m with Vanitas for the distance – but I largely agree with Wooper’s complaints.

Detective is Already Dead 2-3

👏Amun’s applauding!👏

Amun: After the double header of episode 1, I think everyone expected the rest of this show to pivot in a different direction. However, I’m sure many of us (like I did) expected it to get worse….and it got better? Gone are the cheesy CG fights and instead we have some standard detective fare – not earth shattering, but quite…normal? I am an incredible sucker for characters in absentia (see: Fairy Tail’s Lisanna), and The Detective is Already Dead is doing it right: the second episode provides incontrovertible proof that the title is – surprisingly – accurate. I say surprisingly, because most times shows like these give themselves some wiggle room in case they need to bring a “dead” character back – not so here. And I respect that. There isn’t nearly as much dialog as was in the early manga chapters, and what is there is pretty snappy. Sure, pervert accusations are overdone, but at least I’m not asleep (like the manga had me). Overall, I’m very pleasantly surprised – although the only troubling part I see is that I think we’re going to meet all of Siesta’s donated organs. Bit of a macabre way to get a harem, don’t you think?

Hamefura 2-3

👏Amun’s applauding!👏

Amun: Every time I watch a Hamefura episode, I keep waiting for the bottom to drop out. I should probably stop worrying – this show’s writing is spot on. Season 2 had me worried as the tension of doom from the first cour is dissipated – rest easy, as new problems arrive for our lovable idiot and the jokes hit more often than miss (I was in stitches over the evil step-sister portrayal). I don’t mind the prevalence of dark magic being the main baddie and expanding the cast is a necessity that I’ll live with. We’re not the deepest show around, but who cares – we’re having a good time with Bakarina!  All in all: thumbs up.