Category Archives: Episode Writeup

Sound! Euphonium – Episode 9

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A somewhat lesser episode of Euphonium this week, split evenly between friendship and anxiety. There were good moments scattered throughout, and the cast remains strong, but I guess basically anything would feel like a comedown after last week. My favorite scene here was easily the Kaori-Haruka centerpiece – in just a bare handful of scenes, those two have managed to define themselves and their friendship in sharp and poignant strokes. Their conversation here reflected a great deal of the central concerns of Euphonium, from friendship to personal excellence to the fear of wasting your precious time, and having them essentially be stuck as the unhappy counterweight to Kousaka is a really inspired choice. This show’s base variables are really damn good.

Here’s my full review. More notes below!

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The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan – Episode 9

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Oh hey, this episode wasn’t totally terrible! Was pretty happy to see that. Watching shows that are consistently bad is really just tiring for me at this point – even when SAO was bad, it was at least visually interesting and moved well, whereas Nagato Yuki-chan’s bad stuff is just absolutely interminable. But this episode had good scenes! A couple solid jokes, and a legitimately nice moment between Asakura and Haruhi. You get a pass this time, Nagato Yuki-chan.

Here’s my full episode post. Notes below!

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Oregairu S2 – Episode 9

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No rest for the ‘rohas, apparently. Hikki’s finally repaired his relationship with his friends, and this episode did a wonderful job of conveying both the old sense of easy banter between them and the new degree of honesty all three of them share. But the big moments here were the last two – that gorgeous moment on the rollercoaster, and Iroha’s long-awaited confession to Hayato. Season two just keeps giving us these unexpected gifts of presentation; normally it comes down to the animation, but here, the framing was just so damn on-point. There’s no stopping this train.

Here’s my oversized ANN review again. And plenty of notes below!

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Sound! Euphonium – Episode 8

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So yeah, that was an all-time great. One of the best episodes I’ve ever seen this studio produce. God damn.

I wrote essentially a double-length review for this one, and I still barely even got to cover the tremendous acuity of shot framing and animation that elevated what was already a fundamentally well-written and wonderfully composed episode. This was basically the first episode where Kousaka got to come into her own as a character, and she made the most of it, dazzling Kumiko and basically everyone else through her proud, captivating personality. From the quieter moments with Hazuki and Midori, or Goto and Riko, up to that tremendous finale sequence, everything here was poignant and beautiful. KyoAni are playing in the stars again.

Here’s my full review. Notes below!

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Oregairu S2 – Episode 8

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Hoooly shit this episode. This was the one we’d been waiting for – the one the whole show had been building up to, really. Sensei finally gives Hachiman a full diagnosis, and Hikki responds by doing what he always should have done, but never really could do until now – telling the truth. That second half was just a goddamn rollercoaster, employing all of this season’s heightened emotive storytelling tricks to hammer home the most honest moment in this friendship to date. This was definitely an episode.

My megasized ANN review is here. Plenty of notes below!

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Sound! Euphonium – Episode 7

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Euphonium’s rainy day episode knocks it out of the park. Aoi’s long-hinted exiting of the band sends ripples all across the group, and Haruka is really given some time to shine as we dig into her very understandable leadership insecurities. We also got the first big questions regarding the almost-too-perfect Asuka, and Kumiko’s side neatly reflected all of this with her worries about losing one friendship and solace in the warmth of her new ones. I’ve got a fair number of notes on this one, since a lot of this episode’s strengths came in tiny details, so let’s get to it!

Here’s my full episode review. Notes below!

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Oregairu S2 – Episode 7

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And we’re right back into the dramatic thick of it this week, with Hachiman finally grappling with his own identity issues only to be demolished by Yukino. There were a lot of individual excellent scenes this week, and the show is continuing to use framing and body language to elevate its stellar conversations. I particularly liked the two long, silent cuts – the first with Hikki and Iroha as they’re crossing the street, and the second when Rumi gave Hikki the silent treatment. Yui also got another great scene this week, and the banter between Hikki and Iroha is really growing on me. They actually seem more comfortable together than either of them do with many of their other friends, since they don’t have anything to prove to each other. As Hayama sadly notes, she feels more comfortable relying on him than the friends she refuses to be more honest with.

Here’s my full episode post. Lotsa notes below!

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The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan – Episode 7

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Well, this sure is a show that I am watching. Roughly twenty minutes of it, once you remove the opening and ending songs. It helps that one minute of that running time is situated before the opening, which gives me a little sense of momentum at the opening. And I can generally make it a good six or seven minutes in before I begin checking the time remaining.

In this week’s Nagato Yuki-chan, the characters got on a train and then looked at some souvenirs. In next week’s episode, I suspect they will take a bath. Stay tuned.

Here is my very sad episode review. Sad notes are below.

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Sound! Euphonium – Episode 6

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This was a less tightly focused and mood-based episode than the last, but still very good in its own way. We returned to some Kyoto Animation House Comedy this time (which was fitting, since I learned this was largely anime-original), and the results were about as consistently funny as KyoAni can ever be. KyoAni are just way better at understanding the rules of comedy than most studios, and so even an episode like this in a show with a generally different tone can come off as enjoyable. The characters bounce off each other well, the small moments are captured with signature grace, and the central themes keep bubbling to the surface. I’m reaaally hoping we get that split-cour announcement some time soon…

My full writeup is available here. Semi-useless notes down below!

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Oregairu S2 – Episode 6

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Things finally lightened up this week, as Hachiman was tasked with dealing with the fallout of his “solution” from last time. Being the student council president already sounds like a crappy job for him, but not getting any credit for it, being sabotaged by the actual president’s inability to handle conflict or responsibility, and not even being able to share the burden with his friends? Yeah, this is one shitty bed Hikki has made for himself. My favorite parts of this episode were the understated scenes between Hikki and Yui in the first half, but the ridiculous meeting with Iroha’s “collaborators” was pretty damn funny. I guess we could use a break from all the crazy tension.

My full ANN review is here. Notes after the cut!

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