Management: So I heard you guys like notes or something! As with Utena and Katanagatari, I took a whole crapton of timestamped notes while watching FMA, with almost any line of any noteworthy thematic relevance being recorded and commented on in time. They’re not intended to be an actual formal piece – they’re me gathering ideas and poking at thoughts as I watch the show in real time. But if you want a big dense journey into FMA’s threads that goes beyond my essay on the subject, here we are.
Category Archives: Episode Writeup
Yuri Kuma Arashi – Episode 10
It’s bear time, and all of the tertiary bears are dead! Yuri Kuma has always been pretty narrow in its scope, but with Yuriika gone and Kureha apparently accepted by her classmates for the moment, there’s not much left to do but see Ginko and Kureha finally clash. Will Ginko’s lust-rage devour her friend? Will Kureha forgive her friend? Will we just get three straight episodes of Lulu derping around instead, which I totally wouldn’t mind and upon reflection actively encourage? ONLY TIME WILL TELL.
Rolling Girls – Episode 10
Fine recovery from Rolling Girls this week – to make up for last week’s slowness, this one kicked into narrative overdrive, pushing pretty much the whole cast along a variety of story tracks. There were some funny jokes, a great fight, and just a general sense of energy that kept momentum high even when the show attempted to dramatically overreach. Hopefully things stay this fun through the end!
My full ANN post is available here. Notes below!
Parasyte – Episode 22
A strange and strangely enjoyable episode of Parasyte this week. We got the expected Gotou fight, and that was… pretty alright. But then the rest of this episode diverged into a side narrative with a little old lady in the woods, and that was actually quite a nice time! That material felt like it had more grace and energy than the show’s possessed for a while now, so even if it was a diversion, it was a welcome one.
My full ANN post is available here. Notes below!
Yuri Kuma Arashi – Episode 9
The bears have returned! After a week off, we finally get to see the results of last episode’s asshole cliffhanger. What was said in the rain? Has Kureha murdered Ginko? Will love survive? ONLY THE BEARS KNOW.
Alright, enough of that, let’s get to the episode.
Rolling Girls – Episode 9
Rolling Girls took a turn towards character drama this week, which unfortunately meant we had to grapple with the fact that the show has spent this entire season ignoring its main cast in order to futz around with side characters. Futzing around with side characters is fine, but if the show was going to eventually turn to this, it really needed to do more meaningful work humanizing its main cast – as is, this came off as a turn I wish worked, but just wasn’t supported by the show. A shame.
My full ANN post is available here. Notes below!
Log Horizon II – Episode 22
In addition to just being another one of those slow-ass episodes full of cake and gags that Log Horizon occasionally stumbles through, this episode also featured what felt like the show’s first potential narrative misstep, in the “woooo aliens did it” explanation for Elder Tale’s genesis. The show’s obviously built up enough trust that I’m hopeful it will turn out in an interesting way, but Roe 2’s initial explanation struck me as one of the least interesting ways this show could have resolved its underlying issues.
On the plus side, while I didn’t really like this episode, I’m quite happy with my explanation of why I didn’t like this episode. So here’s that full writeup! Notes below, as always…
Parasyte – Episode 21
Alright, back on steadier ground. This wasn’t a great episode, but there was good material here, and after last week’s episode I’m just happy to see the show isn’t falling apart altogether. The Hirakawa material reflected fairly well on the show’s progress so far, the big Gotou fight was actually pretty engaging outside of the stupid shounen dialogue, and I’m still enjoying seeing a far less mopey Shinichi. Looks like we’ll be getting out of this with dignity intact!
My full ANN post is available here. Took a bunch of notes this time, and they’re all below!
Log Horizon II – Episode 21
Well, the kids’ arc ended, and with it Log Horizon’s recent insane hot streak. This was a cooldown episode, full of little end-tyings and new beginnings and small character moments. It was fine enough at that, though it is always a little sad when Log Horizon gears down out of one of its peaks. If only all the episodes were that good!
It’s also a shame to think we won’t get another arc like that for literally years, given that Log Horizon has more or less run out of source material, but there’s still plenty of story to tell, and we’ve still got a few episodes left regardless. Gotta stay positive.
My full ANN post is available here. Notes below!
Rolling Girls – Episode 8
Definitely one of the better episodes of Rolling Girls this week, sold almost entirely on the strength of that last, fantastic sequence. The rest of the episode actually kinda dragged and repeated itself at times, but the resolution to Chiyo’s conflict was graceful enough, and we’re still getting endearing offhand jokes from the Rolling Girls here and there. The show’s doing okay.
My full ANN post is here. Notes below!