Author Archives: Bobduh

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha – Episode 8

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As we return for another episode of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, I’m overjoyed to have a serious announcement: the show is actually great now. I was frankly getting somewhat worried through the first few episodes, as the show’s initial aesthetic uniqueness faded into a pretty ho-hum monster of the week formula, but both episode six and episode seven impressed me in clear and very different ways, and I’m now very happy to be genuinely excited about what happens next. It always makes me feel a little guilty when I have negative or deeply mixed feelings on something someone cared enough about to actually support me writing about, and as I’ve said many times, I vastly prefer watching stuff I find genuinely compelling to sending up stuff I find pretty bad, so I’m more than happy to finally be able to bring my full, genuine enthusiasm to this project.

But enough about me and my various complexes – let’s briefly recap what those two episodes did right. In episode six, Nanoha matched the strongest set of layouts it’s yet offered to personal drama which made terrific use of the show’s signature quality, its tendency to let mundane or incidental scenes play out for far longer than similar shows. Episode six was a triumph of form, demonstrating not only that Nanoha absolutely possesses an inspired sense of visual composition, but also that it was able to use its narrative strangeness in genuinely effective ways.

In episode seven, the show demonstrated that its consistent episodic buildup had actually been something of a long con, establishing an expectation of dramatic scale that was swiftly overturned by the formal introduction of the show’s space force. Leaping gracefully between theoretically disparate but ultimately compatible genres, while also fully establishing Fate as a compelling heroine in her own right, Nanoha’s seventh episode went a long way towards investing me in Nanoha’s actual plot, just as six restored my faith in its aesthetic vision. With Fate having returned from her “home” and a new Jewel Seed hanging in the balance, I’m excited to see how Nanoha’s newfound solidity informs this return to Nanoha and Fate’s clashes. Let’s get right to it!

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Ojamajo Doremi – Episode 38

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Saturday has come again, and it’s absolutely time for some more Ojamajo Doremi. Doremi has entered a somewhat odd interim phase in its current arc; after Onpu’s dramatic debut and declaration of intent, she’s mostly just hung around, acting occasionally villainous but more often just indifferent to our heroines’ plights. Her nefarious benefactor Majo Ruka obviously has a legitimate stake in sabotaging Rika and her ojamajos, but Onpu mostly just seems down for whatever, and willing to work with any side if it sounds like fun.

In meta-genre terms, Onpu and Ruka’s appearance has kept Doremi focused on fanciful witch world conflicts, from the dramatic race of two episodes ago to the witch frog invasion last week. This makes sense; like with Ruka’s first appearance, it’s difficult to pull off a classic “one of our classmates has a problem”-style episode while also keeping things focused on the inter-witch drama, and so Doremi is temporarily prioritizing its magical worldbuilding over its moral lessons. Unfortunately, these episodes don’t tend to be as strong as Doremi’s standard material – the system of magic in this world is too arbitrary to really invest in, and these episodes tend to lack the satisfying emotional substance or thematic payoffs of the more realistic conflicts. Still, Doremi has always managed a reasonable balance of its various component materials, and I’m guessing this recent swing towards magical malevolence will pay off soon. Let’s see what schemes Ruka and Onpu cook up this time!

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Bloom Into You – Episode 1

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Today we’re embarking on another new anime journey, as we explore the first episode of the ongoing Bloom Into You. I actually reviewed this episode once before for the ANN Preview Guide, but those pieces are designed mostly just to be a “is this worth checking out” snapshot, so today I’m happy to revisit it. As I mentioned in that post, my outside knowledge of Bloom Into You is fairly limited – I know it’s a generally well-regarded yuri romance known for its slow pacing and uncommonly sensitive emotional insights, but that’s about it. That’s more than enough for me, to be honest – I’m a sucker for romance and stories that respect and celebrate all our small emotional turns, so I’m very on board for a gentle love story.

As for this anime production, my only experience with director Makoto Katou is 2015’s Beautiful Bones. That show was certainly pretty, but I often felt its use of rainbow and pastel colors essentially overwhelmed the screen, saturating our perspective in a manner that felt more overbearing than evocative. Still, most of Beautiful Bones’ issues were more reflective of its source material than its visual execution, and with a well-regarded manga and veteran composer Jukki Hanada (Love Live!, A Place Further than the Universe, maybe half of KyoAni’s recent productions) handling series composition, I’m excited to see what Katou can really do. Let’s dive right into Bloom Into You!

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Fall 2018 – First Half in Review

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Dear lord, is the season really halfway over already? Well folks, we’re somehow here, and I think it’s about time to take stock of the season so far. Traditionally, I’ve used these halfway point articles as a way to informally rank all my ongoing shows; more recently, I’ve decided that particular gag has far outlived its theoretical charm, and am now happy just to break down my overall thoughts on each seasonal contender. The seasonal halfway point is a pretty silly time to rank shows, but it’s actually a very reasonable time to more generally assess them; with shimmering premieres long in the past and thrilling finales far in the future, it’s at this point that shows demonstrate their true stamina, their ability to keep us engaged week after week.

As for this particular season, I’m still more than content with my sturdy mix of sports dramas, action spectacles, and SSSS.Gridman’s tokusatsu-slanted weirdness. I’m not sure this season has one highlight I love as much as summer’s Planet With or winter’s Violet Evergarden, but the overall quality of my watch schedule is very high – this is a season marked not by highs and lows, but by perpetual consistency. That doesn’t mean I don’t have much to talk about, of course; even if everything I’m watching is pretty darn good, it’s all pretty darn good in its own unique way. With that, let’s start with this season’s most venerable franchise, and break down Fall 2018!

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Why It Works: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is Invading Your Home!

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Yep, we’re back on the JoJo train. For this week’s Why It Works, I focused specifically on the show’s long history of home invasion narratives, and how well they work for its specific blend of action and horror. To be honest, you could probably write a supplementary article on how the show embraces “invasion” more generally, often through terrifying Stands like Rohan’s Heaven’s Door. But the language of home invasions specifically is baked deeply into JoJo’s DNA, so I was happy to focus on that for now!

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is Invading Your Home!

Princess Tutu – Episode 17

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We open Princess Tutu’s seventeenth episode with yet another strange, thematically resonant image; a rose standing alone, captured in either a mirror or a picture frame. “Once upon a time, there was a young man with a beautiful face” our untrustworthy narrator explains. “The people loved the handsome young man, but he never showed any interest in loving anyone. This is because all he loved was himself. When the young man, who had neglected to love anyone and sought only to be loved, found someone he truly cared for, he realized he had lost even the words to express those feelings.”

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Ojamajo Doremi – Episode 37

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Folks, it is absolutely time for more Ojamajo Doremi. With Doremi’s generous, handsome, and highly intelligent principle funder having recently stuffed the Doremi fund, we’re looking at Doremi Saturdays for a while to come, and I couldn’t be happier. The show’s last episode held to one of its less common modes – a wholly plot-focused adventure in the Witch World. Pitting Doremi, her friends, and their fairies against an uncommonly disciplined hare and an absurdly speedy tortoise, the episode was a gleeful celebration of Doremi’s very silly world, offering few life lessons beyond “if you’re making a hole for Doremi to crawl through, make sure to leave room for her hair orbs.”

That episode also saw the continuation of Onpu’s antagonism, though frankly, “briefly interrupting the girls for a conversation while shopping” isn’t exactly the height of villainy. Onpu is treading a difficult line of kinda sorta maybe attempting to sabotage the girls while also remaining their friends, which feels like a natural expression of her generally staged existence. Onpu likely sees friendship as perfectly compatible with villainy, because to her, both of these things are a kind of performance. The only thing she seems to genuinely care about is making sure she herself gets what she wants, and she seeks that goal with the bright smile and feigned innocence of a natural performer. We haven’t seen a single moment of true honesty from Onpu, and I’m eager to see the show actually investigate her character. Whether this particular episode focuses on her or not, I’m excited to see Doremi ramp up into another high-stakes arc. Let’s get right to it!

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One Piece – Volume 18

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There are scattered moments within One Piece that seem to embody the romance of the high seas; the mysteries of the ocean, the scale of its vast movements, the ways we can come to understand it so well it feels like an old friend. Nami excels at facilitating these moments, as her navigator’s knowledge and generally contemplative personality tend to make her most attuned to the ocean’s sway. The scene early in chapter eighteen, where Nami muses on the nature of underwater vents, doesn’t impact our ongoing narrative in any way, and would be skipped in a point-to-point summary of this arc’s events. Nonetheless, it’s a beautiful moment that naturally embodies the wonder of the ocean, and highlights how One Piece is far more than a straightforward action tableau. I appreciate that Oda consistently offers these little tonal oases, these beautiful moments that are only their own reward.

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Fall 2018 – Week 5 in Review

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With the season nearing its halfway point, basically all of my shows have settled into their mid-run neutral at this point, and continue to each offer their own steady charms. Thunderbolt Fantasy feels like it’s at last in full swing at this point, offering thrilling fights and meaty discussions between its thoroughly established cast. Run with the Wind is also demonstrating great confidence, and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure seems to be harnessing everything Araki has learned so far. The only real weak point this week was SSSS.Gridman’s beach episode, but to be honest, I feel like a beach episode was basically a sunk cost for that show from the start. All in all, the fall season continues to offer plenty of excitement, and seems determined to end this year on a high note. Let’s run these shows down!

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Why It Works: Don’t Sleep on Tsurune

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Today on Crunchyroll, I ran through a brief formal breakdown of the vivid visual storytelling apparent all through Tsurune’s first several episodes. Part attempted sell and part close visual reading, I’m hoping this piece convinces at least a few wary souls to pick up Kyoto Animation’s latest production. The show’s been very satisfying so far, and given me plenty to chew on in both an aesthetic and character sense each week. I hope you enjoy the piece!

Don’t Sleep on Tsurune