Category Archives: Episode Writeup

The World God Only Knows S3 – Episode 9

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Who’s ready for some tears? I’m ready for some tears. Keima’s been getting away with this date-juggling for too long, and I think it’s time for the hammer to fall. Bring on the waterworks.

Episode 9

0:12 – It begins!  You might not like what you find, Ayumi!

2:49 – Oh god that expression.  Yeah, I know that feeling.

Chihiro is maybe the only capture-girl Keima actually seems to have real conversations with, and not just lines from that archetype’s script. I guess that’s the consequence of her being defined as the “normal” girl

3:07 – Jeez, this scene is really good.  Most romantic comedies that actually want you to care about the romance can’t pull together scenes this refreshingly grounded and honest

…yeah, you know what I’m talking about 

3:47 – NO!  BAD Katsuragi! We do not shove girls onto benches!

3:59 – Keima seems even more shook up than usual.  And look, he’s learned about consent!

4:15 – ABORT. ABORT.  Man, now I don’t want any delicious tears. These two are actually pretty adorable together

5:37 – HOLY SHIT KEIMA YOU TREMENDOUS ASSHOLE.  Keima plz no

5:59 – NO it is NOT oh my GOD be a decent person 

6:37 – She actually likes Katsuragi , and not one of his endless variations on debonair MC-kun. A new experience for him

7:42 – Ermahgerd this is such a good direction to take this.  Keima’s greatest challenge – a girl who likes him for him

8:35 – KEIMA NO FORGET THE GODDESSES THIS IS TRUE WUV 

8:40 – Keima no stop u breakin my heart 

8:55 – KEIMA WHYYYYY 

WHYYYYY 

WHYYYY 

WHYYYokay I’ll stop 

9:56 – Seriously holy shit this scene.  That was awful.

10:22 – Don’t even try it Keima . This is gonna be one satisfying slap

10:35 – Aw man even better.  HIT HIM AGAIN

Incidentally, I realize Keima’s working for the ostensible “greater good” here, but… fuck it, HIT HIM AGAIN

10:55 – Aw, Keima.  His position really is pretty terrible

11:58 – Oh goddamnit Diana , can’t you see Keima is not in the mood? 

12:23 – This is actually how goddesses think love science works 

13:03 – This scene is pretty great . Diana is a bad friend

14:00 – Is Keima even going to be able to go back to games after this arc?  Chihiro has pretty definitely shown the consequences of toying with people like this

14:16 – Suffering yesss 

20:50 – Oh right the plot has to go somewhere once we’ve found the goddesses 

21:35 – IT’S ALL CONNECTED . I actually love the silliness of these deductions

21:57 – Brilliant! 

And Done

Christ. That was even more tragic than I could have imagined. Goddamn was that Chihiro scene exhausting.

It’s nice to see Keima actually cracking, and also being forced to do some legitimately horrible things for the sake of the mission. Apparently toying with people’s emotions isn’t all fun and games after all!

Uchouten Kazoku – Episode 9

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I can’t image this show getting any more tragic than last week. That episode was focused wholly on the grieving process – but as Yasaburou stated at the end, this shared loss has ultimately pulled the family together. With secrets revealed (the only remaining threads being the identity of the last couple Friday Fellows and Kaisei) and the election looming ever closer, the time has probably come for Yasaburou to make some hard calls. He knows he’s the inheritor of the Idiot Blood, and he cares far more than he lets on. I’m not expecting old-fashioned heroism, but I am expecting results.

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Gatchaman Crowds – Episode 8

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I’m hearing all sorts of crazy nonsense about this episode. Let’s just get to it.

Episode 8

0:32 – No mincing words today! 

1:32 – This is kinda interesting.  Well, first, I love all the quirky little details of their apartment, and this shot is a great example of that. But more critically, this line sort of points to how OD has consistently been cast as both the one actual hero in the old model (as in, someone the characters could completely rely on and surrender individual agency to if the situation became desperate enough), and also as the central father figure among the cast (though Joe performs this role for Sugane), which may amount to the same thing. OD’s protection is able to shelter them, but Hajime’s meeting of equals allows Utsutsu to become self-reliant

Also yeah that’s a pretty ominous line for him to be saying

2:21 – Is OD attempting to perform Hajime’s role? 

2:35 – Yerp 

3:07 – One blunt line from Sugane is worth three Pai-OD conversations. 

3:22 – Again, we’ve covered this,  but “having fun” is Hajime for something closer to “achieving your purpose,” and is generally tied to the kind of social connection and service Hajime idolizes (though Katze has his own priorities, obviously). Great related post by /u/SohumB from last week

4:01 – She’s never thought much of Pai’s leadership, but now she’s ignoring it completely 

4:34 – Oof.  Double blow for Rui

6:20 – Well, Rui’s problem is obviously that he centralized power in his own way, and now he’s paying the price for that.  But X being a central intelligence is less interesting than X being an automated process used only to facilitate natural social and civic connections. The question of whether Rui’s ultimate goal is flawed or not can’t be engaged merely by abusing his admittedly hypocritical means. Kinda disappointed about that

8:32 – Fortunately Hajime always keeps things interesting 

8:35 – Pai’s pretty much already surrendered leadership 

9:04 – Joe continues to play from a hero’s journey script  decades behind the times

9:12 – But like Utsutsu, Sugane has learned not to rely on mentors/superiors 

10:03 – Hajime finally gets her wish.  Rui’s plan might work out after all, though not with his tools

13:12 – Sugane’s great with the kids 

13:47 – It seems like Berg-Katze wants people to distrust and destroy each other, so I guess Hajime is pre-establishing that this discord is coming from an outsider?  Announcing the Gatchaman also works to reduce their own mistique as untouchable heroes, which somewhat weakens Katze’s body-stealing (since that’s more powerful the more important the stolen body is, as shown with Rei)

14:13 – Oh she’s just getting all kinds of value out of this 

15:34 – Well there’s really no helping that 

16:36 – LITTERING?  THAT’S THE LAST STRAW

19:49 – They’re going a little deep on the fun theory here.  So I guess he’s thinking Hajime’s society taps into a kind of honesty of communal spirit and happiness best exemplified through the even ground of childhood

And Done

Interesting episode. At the moment, the show seems more down on the social networking than I’d figured it would be, and siding largely with Hajime in emphasizing the power of equal, face-to-face connection. I kinda hope not all the pieces are in place at this point – Rui’s ideal world is fascinating, so I’m hoping GALAX won’t just be pure antagonist from now on.

The difference between 26 and either Hajime or Rui is still pretty interesting. Hajime and Rui both use that “fun” argument, talking in terms of the inherent satisfaction and good-feeling of collaborating and building a better future. In contrast, this episode 26 was basically talking about his work in terms of compensation for services rendered. The show’s philosophy seems to lean towards this being the wrong way to frame improving the world, but as with last time, the situation just isn’t that simple for him – he’s not just greedy, he has a kid and a mortgage and is far past the point where he could simply start over. Influencing the next generation through reaching the children is nice and all, but it doesn’t fix his world, and the distance between Hajime or Rui’s ideals and the practical realities of many of the people they’d wish to have adopt them is something I’d love to see the show continue to address.

Free! – Episode 8

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Well here we are again. Last week’s episode kind of blew my mind – first, by being actually kind of really good (excellent, atmospheric direction, a bunch of beautiful shots and some actually effective drama), and second, by almost certainly being good specifically because they brought on the director of K-On and Tamako Market. Holy shit you guys. Up is down, left is right, moe isn’t garbage. Well, I mean, I guess being well-directed can only do so much – I gave each of those shows the fair three-episode shake, and as far as I’m concerned a gifted director tied to that genre will generally create a masterfully directed, evocatively lit version of watching paint dry. You can’t squeeze blood from a blob. A blob that is made of stone, that is. And by blood I mean thematic richness, or… look, it isn’t a perfect metaphor.

Alright. Enough regret – why fret over past misjudgments when I’ve still got so much time to make new ones? Let’s Free!

Episode 8

0:17 – Oh no!  What will Haru live for? Seriously, what else will he oh wait I forgot 

1:55 – Hey guys, how can we drain this episode of any dramatic tension? Oh I don’t know, maybe by naming itRevenge in the Medley . Not that the entire world hadn’t already guessed that plot development, but seriously, people

2:00 – I can also envision that splash as the fountain of dollars necessary to make water look this good 

2:11 – I’ve been trained to feel tension because they’re the only two adults in this world . A rule since literally forever ago 

2:25 – The Frees are uniformly disgusted by the thought of heterosexual tension 

2:52 – Haru seeks solace in the arms of his lover . It wasn’t supposed to be like this!

3:06 – Haru’s plan relies heavily on nebulous metaphors .

Holy shit, I’m actually kind of blind to the fanservice in this show now. I look at an image like that and only think of its wibbly-wobbly thematic implications

3:48 – Speaking of non-romantic tension . Man, anyone not on the male-bonding train has it pretty rough in this world

4:29 – In case you find this outlining of the show’s last act tedious, here are some free chests 

4:48 – “Who forgot to take out the trash?  Shit, did I say that out loud? We cool, guys?”

5:03 – Oh the tears.  The sweet, delicious tears 

5:17 – Between this and C3-bu, I’m beginning to wonder if sports shows have any other conflicts 

5:54 – “Am I just a substitute Rei?!”  “Of course not, Rin. You also have glasses!”

6:20 – KyoAni sure loves its fans 

6:25 – And a liiittle more 

“This time, it’ll be manservice. And there’ll be a beach episode – no! TWO beach episodes. NO- A BEACH SEASON.”

7:07 – KyoAni you think you’re so cool . you are so cool kyoani let me hang out with you

7:34 – I actually love this guy.  In fact, him, Gou, and the teacher are all great. KyoAni tends to nail it with the side characters… well, with a few exceptions 

7:41 – Seriously Rei you fuck this up we’re bringing in the next sub 

7:46 – Haru suddenly realizes he is not his own entire team 

8:33 – This episode’s quite the bounty, eh? 

9:33 – That’s encouraging, because frankly you look like shit.  Now let go of those glasses and win the heat, you damn freeloader

10:29 – It’s okay, you tried your best.  Now give me your goggles, your jacket, and your towel. You’re walking home

10:33 – Yeah, you beat your last time of ‘holy fuck are you unconscious’ 

10:37 – And on the bright side, the goggle thing drew attention from your shit swimming 

10:56 – Aaand he forgot them again 

11:28 – A nice little shot . This episode’s less impressive than last week, but that’s okay because I’m feeling funnier than last week. Win some lose some

11:46 – No there isn’t. You just swim fast and don’t fuck up your goggles oh my god someone smack him 

12:17 – Gou’s meddling strikes again 

12:20 – Pardon me for gendering a little, but didn’t this trip anyone else a little?  I feel like “woops, I signed all you girls up for something super-embarrassing or unexpected” “EHHHHH???” is so established that it’s immediately noticeable seeing the thing reversed. It normally works as a “let’s embarrass these characters because fuck you moe rules” kinda thing – it’s like a variant of the tsundere power-dynamic appeal (where you’re seeing a character reveal their secret side/vulnerability, thus hnnngghh)

12:45 – WHO GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO SPEAK  alright I’ll stop

12:59 – Tasty.  Man, I could cover my walls with this season’s bounty

13:55 – That’s something . It’s no Tasogare Otome pool , but it’s something

Incidentally, if you want my Tasogare Otome x Amnesia review, it’s a mediocre romcom with a flacid male lead and hearteningly pro-sex female lead lightly speckled with a few images as gorgeous as that one

14:14 – Seriously dude I don’t know you’re kind of a weird guy 

14:27 – Rei I am going to shove my fist so far up your ass it will break your nose 

14:58 – I’m sure this is how Haru imagines they spend all their time  when he and Makoto aren’t babying their asses

15:46 – I like this gag.  I also like that Makoto let them do their whole three stooges routine before mentioning it

17:14 – And the message ends. Don’t you see now, Haru?  It’s about togetherness

That was pretty adorable, though

17:49 Heeeeey  I remember this shot! Except now it’s all bright and… oooh. You’re a sneaky one, KyoAni!

18:04 – Please acknowledge Rei’s butterfly pajamas 

18:52 – “Yeah, sure… who are you, again?” 

20:12 – Rin is positively swimming in emotions right now .

Sorry. sorry

20:26 – Could anyone?  This show is the best kind of silly. Weeeell, maybe second best  (RIP Crimu Edge)

20:52 – THANK you 

And Done

Well, that certainly was an episode of Free. Less visually inspired than the last, but certainly more satisfying than the slice of life set. Races have been lost, teams have pulled together, and Haru has resolved to… figure his shit out later, I guess. That’s cool! Right there with you, buddy. Swimming is complicated (no it isn’t).

The World God Only Knows S3 – Episode 8

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Oh right, I knew I had something important to do today. Watch a silly harem comedy and overanalyze its self-aware takedowns of genre craft.

Episode 8

0:10 – This show is extremely silly . Was Haqua and Elsie’s entire graduating class female?

2:13 – Man, Keima does so much work to make this more watchable than your garden-variety harem. Most harem leads are such milquetoast self-insert “nice guy” nobodies that it immediately strains credulity that a handful of girls would all suddenly fall in love with them. It makes the power fantasy angle kind of overwhelmingly evident, it makes for a set of totally unbelievable female characters, and it results in regularly stilted and repetitive banter. Keima, on the other hand, always works to make himself some kind of bizarre anime-negaverse brand of charming, and he always knows exactly what he wants. That lends itself to more distinctive little dramatic arcs, better banter, and much more believable romantic progression.

Plus the show both doesn’t get caught in static love drama and also draws great humor from the distance between anime character psychology and human psychology. Which is kinda key, since taking any of this seriously as actual romance swiftly leads to dark places .

3:19 – What self-respecting Hell government bureau doesn’t have a gift shop? 

6:37 – Why is that doll so funny 

6:48 – Life is suffering for Keima 

8:42 – Well this is different 

9:57 – Thank god for Keima’s anime-logic universe . If this were the real world, he’d be screwed

10:30 – Man, these wings keep getting easier and easier

13:27 – Nora’s doing  a great Varys impression 

16:31 – His strategies are almost immediately defeated  by any girl who isn’t introverted/isolated. Kind of a limited power

16:42 – Meaning the goddess isn’t inside Chihiro, and things are going to get extremely messy 

19:33 – TWGOK keeps it classy 

20:05 – Oh god, this is gonna be so bad. He’s gonna make some big play, and it’ll actually work, but she won’t have a goddess, so gaaahhhhh man I’m uncomfortable just thinking about it

And Done

Welp, this is gonna end miserably. Brace for impact, folks

C3-bu – Episode 8

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Hopefully today will see the triumph and downfall of the reign of Chairman Yura. Let’s do it!

Episode 8

4:45 – Well, the episode’s called “Does a Commander Have to be Heartless?” So I assume this will end with the “character experiences their lowest point” moment, where Yura’s teammates finally stop putting up with her abuse. Hopefully she’ll manage to pick herself up without Kanbaru’s intervention

Kinda funny to me that due to the nature of anime seasons, a whole slew of “character experiences their lowest point” episodes are cropping up this week – this, Uchouten Kazoku, Gatchaman Crowds, Free!… narrative structure is pretty predictable, I guess, and structure generally dictates the turn hits around the two-thirds point, which then curves upwards into the road to redemption and climax

Incidentally, I like this episode’s game format. Seems like a very good way to keep the drama continuous and force the characters to interact with a variety of teams

4:50 – Nice face 

6:59 – That’s right.  Suck it up ya goddamn sissies

7:25 – Well I’m sure this won’t come up again 

Saying that makes me want to do an entire writeup from the perspective of someone who is utterly blind to story convention and completely surprised by every predictable plot turn, but that might be too self-indulgent even for me

8:21 – Goddamnit can’t you fuckups do even one thing right 

8:41 – I bend over backwards for you shitstains and this is how you reward me? 

9:06 – Yeah jeez that’d be crazy . Although in all fairness, there is a chance they’ll save that for an episode or two, and have Yura’s dictatorship blow up before she gets the chance to compete with Rin here

9:39 – Night airsoft in the woods?  These guys must love broken ankles

9:54 – Dat’s hardcore 

11:12 – Fortunately, our team is composed of little girls 

12:37 – What have I become?!? 

14:01 – Dun dun dun . I like how characters always raise their hands when it starts raining to confirm that yes, that is in fact rain which is falling on you

14:51 – That bitch insulted Sonora’s teachings!  That’s it – I’m gonna try really hard and not have any fun andbeat her! That’ll show her!

15:23 – Yura’s minister of propaganda  is working overtime today

20:15 – Pretty intense duel . Definitely one of the better ones so far, though it’s still kinda weightless, since they didn’t really set up the parameters of this warehouse fight beyond “we found them – oh no, it’s an ambush!” Players are hit or not depending on whether its convenient for the plot at that time.

That said, this is more about the emotional payoff than the sports one. But this show spends too much time focusing on the sports/action element to really get away with slacking off on setting up comprehensible action setpieces

21:06 – YURA YOU HAVE BESMIRCHED THE NAME OF AIRSOFT 

21:24 – I’m a sucker for big unsubtle tricks like this shot . Gatchaman was also having a lot of fun with the lighting this week

And Done

Great development at the end there. Now the brewing discontent of Yura’s teammates will be swept under the rug because they actually won, and Yura’s the only one who knows anything is wrong. I look forward to much suffering going forward!

Uchouten Kazoku – Episode 8

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Well, the plot’s afoot now. Yajirou’s part in his father’s death, though obviously not anything approaching full blame, will definitely be quite the scandal for the election. Yasaburou has so far managed to indulge his ultimately compassionate and dutiful nature while still maintaining his air of aloof ne’er-do-wellhood, but this trial will likely force his hand.

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Monogatari S2 – Episode 8

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So, Araragi and Shinobu, time travelling buddy cops trying to find their way back to the future. Or, as various people have pointed out, simply waiting for the future to happen on its own, since technically neither of them actually age. But wouldn’t that result in double Araragis and double Shinobus? I guess they could always just wait until present day again and then kill their doppelgangers… or wait, no, they don’t have to, they can just wait until the extra ones (not extra technically, just them in the future-past) head back in time. And that works whether this is a new timeline or simply a point in the past on the original one. Problem solved!

I like time travel.

Episode 8

1:03 – Baiting Kizu once again. KyoAni have some competition in the troll olympics

1:56 – These two have a great dynamic. Actually, most of the characters in this show have a pretty decent rapport, outside of Nadeko I guess. One of the many things that makes this a harem-but-not-really – I mean, structurally it is a harem (well, more of a supernatural/psychological thriller in a harem shell), and everybody pretty much loves Araragi, but almost all the conversations are an even back-and-forth based on friendship, not romantic tension. In fact, many conversations seem to possess sexual tension but not romantic tension, which is much more rare in anime, or at least rarely done in a way that isn’t just fetishizing a character for the sake of the audience. And legitimately good banter is a precious thing.

3:37 – Eh, lesser OP. I wonder if we’ll get another Platinum Disco?

4:01 – For the plot to work, obviously. That’s how time travel always works.

Incidentally, holy fuck does getting precise screencaps suck in this damn stream.

5:23 – Yeah, because saving a little girl 11 years ago isn’t going to affect anything else. Araragi is not a very good time traveler. Then again, if anyone ever was, time travel stories would be exceedingly boring

5:56 – Goddamnit Araragi. For someone who was expressing questions of parallel timelines an episode ago, you sure are flippant about making massive shifts to the course of peoples’ lives. His martyr complex is not gonna do history any favors

6:13 – I can’t believe Shinobu is the one talking sense into him

7:19 – Yes. This is how the butterfly effect works

7:36 – This makes no sense literally, so I have to assume we’re digging at the theme of this arc. Much like that first conversation about red versus green lights. Which works well with Hachikuji’s existence as an apparition, an eternal red light who can never proceed. Not that they’ll necessarily take it there, but Isin tends to scatter a whole lot of relevant Lego pieces, so I generally just poke pieces into each other until they seem to fit

8:57 – Goddamnit you two stawp

9:59 – Loli Hanekawa. We have jumped the shark

10:18 – Man, Shinbou and his sweet visual gags. A montage of street signs to simulate the experience of rolling down the street. Nice

11:04 – You’re fired. You’re fired. Everyone’s fired

12:36 – If you want to stop being mistaken for a pervert, you should stop being such a goddamn pervert, Araragi

12:38 – This entire episode is just fanservice of Araragi and Shinobu being adorable together. THEY’VE FOUND MY WEAKNESS

13:15 – Very nice

13:44 – Everyone involved is enjoying this arc far too much. New team: also fired

16:26 – Our hero

16:46 – Yes, Araragi. By all means, convince her you’re no one suspicious

17:52 – This is such an insane changeup from the last arc. But I guess Hanekawa arcs are heavy psychological drama, and Hachikuji arcs are pretty close to straight comedy

21:46 – I love the shrine’s color scheme

And Done

Oh jeez, saving a life fucked up the entire present. WOOPSIE-DAISY ARARAGI. Goddamnit. You can’t express some understanding of time travel dynamics and then BREAK THE ONE FUCKING RULE OF TIME TRAVEL. Jesus. What am I gonna do with these kids

Gatchaman Crowds – Episode 7

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I’ve been excited for this one all week. The confrontation has occurred, Hajime has kind of rubbed Rui’s nose in his own hypocrisy, and no hope of an alliance is in sight. Is Rui actually gonna take off his damn makeup and be honest with them? Not likely – he’s obviously very proud and he seems somewhat incapable of seeing other perspectives. Is it war, then? Possibly, though I don’t know what that would do theme-wise. Either way, I think we’re at the breaking point.

Episode 7

0:02 – Nice shot . I bet this’ll be a cheery episode

0:11 – Another really nice one . This show occasionally has animation issues, but its direction and aesthetic are extremely solid

1:07 – Rui’s losing it. 

2:01 – The only other intelligent Gatchaman . He’s a good influence on these kids

4:19 – Simple trick with the lighting here , but it works nicely.

Not sure why I’m on a visual kick this week. The show has kind of set its thematic pieces in place, I guess – we know Hajime and Rui’s philosophies quite well at this point, so all that’s left is to let some dominoes fall

4:27 – Accidental pause reveals another fantastic Hajime face 

5:06 – And Utsutsu is drawn into the light 

5:18 – Bleh.  Another too-much-information moment from Pai. Annoying to see in a show that so often assumes the viewer actually has a brain

6:52 – HOW REAL IS THIS GETTING

7:49 – This escalated quickly 

8:58 – NOT THE TIME FOR A MONOLOGUE 

10:19 – Hurray for leadership 

10:50 – Hajime knows what’s up. She doesn’t blame people for it, though 

11:29 – Awesome shot 

11:41 – Rui has no trouble deciding.  But that has its own pitfalls

God, I love how mixed this show’s feelings are on all its ideas. Well, except for Hajime’s uber-person-hood, I guess

12:21 – Rui’s no fool.  He knew it was hypocritical, but was willing to use any means to establish a world where things like Crowds hopefully wouldn’t be necessary. Another great shot

12:42 – It’s nice having Sugane be the one who makes a connection with Rui, not Hajime. They can talk on equal ground, whereas Hajime stands above everyone, even if she is well-meaning in her lecturing

13:18 – I like Berg Katz mockingly reflecting all of Joe’s melodramatic move names. Just grinding in how old-fashioned and irrelevant this style of hero is, which works both for his character and for this show’s goals

13:42 – Oh god we got the first meeting flashback. Joe’s been throwing out death flag after death flag all show, but that’s probably the last straw

Incidentally, is there actually a respectable term for “death flag”?

14:24 – So apparently OD’s real goddamn powerful. And also an unstable risk, or something. Guess that ominous moment in the OP is relevant

14:48 – Even Pai’s suit has stubby little legs 

17:32 – Dear lord . Also, didn’t want to pause it at the time, but I liked how Berg Katz was mocking him for only doing what he could as an individual human being, as opposed to being the kind of hero the show itself is so sceptical about

18:03 – Might not work this time, Hajime.  Some people just want to watch the world burn

18:14 – Her favorite question. 

19:31 – They’re conveying barely attached to this reality  pretty well

19:42 – Something she can’t understand.  That reoccuring “everyone having fun” thing points to a common humanity that Katz lacks. Hajime’s shocked for the first time

20:08 – Her faith in our nature was shaken.  But it’s not always misplaced 

20:40 – Rui, asking for help and advice?

21:35 – Really hammering on that “bright future”/”when is the world brightest” thing today  – starting with Utsutsu’s conversion, ending here

And Done

Sooo, is Joe dead? He seemed pretty dead, but Utsutsu’s powers are pretty broken, so I dunno. Somehow I don’t think that episode-ending tea party would be appropriate if Sugane’s mentor had bit the bullet.

Anyway, sweet episode. Shit finally hits the fan, and I’m happy to see them finally turning towards Berg Katz. I like how pretty much everyone’s view of both human nature and the power of social media has been examined and discarded by the halfway point, and I’m interested to see what Rui does going forward. I particularly like how Rui finally got his act together this episode – Hajime’s accusations last time didn’t force him further into his own self-delusion, but instead made him resolve to actually attack his own hypocrisy. And when his powers were broken, he freely admitted his rhetoric had been hypocritical all along.

Bunch of other random interesting stuff. All the Gatchamen got some development, and Pai straight up abandoned his subordinates. I hope that results in some changes in their structure – Utsutsu and Sugane almost certainly have far more faith in Hajime than Pai, and even if Hajime’s willing to let this slip, I doubt Sugane will.

This show is full of fun surprises, and at this point I just want to marathon the damn thing out. Watching shows as they air really sucks sometimes.

-edit- Just realized that Pai’s early jealousy about OD being good at managing them plays well into this episode’s mini-arc of tearing down his leadership ability. So that’s actually nice, in retrospect.

Free! – Episode 7

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No manic energy tonight. Very sleepy. Our glistening men will have to use those ample shoulders of theirs to carry a little more weight than usual. Hopefully that won’t be a problem – I found last episode pretty dull in spite of all its touchy-feely character-building pretensions, and I’m really just here to watch Gou be a derp and see Haru and Rin shoot smoldering looks at each other. I’d always thought KyoAni’s slice of life shows were lame, but never before had I actually witnessed a combined beach/desert island/haunted house/slumber party/flashback episode – that is like four played-out tropes too many. Get back in gear, Free. Juggle your resources like this and you’ll never make it to regionals.

Episode 7

0:15 – Wow, this rise out of the water  used as much animation as an entire lesser episode  of Titan

0:23 – Nagisa if you screw this up for Haru  so help me god

2:12 – I kind of wonder if this is any more or less watchable for me than any of KyoAni’s other slice of life shows. I mean, the novelty of it being maleblobs as opposed to moeblobs has kinda worn off, so outside of the vaguely appropriated sports shell, I’m pretty much left with K-On with abs. I guess you fuckers tricked me.

2:52 – Nice shot 

3:16 – Holy shit,  I’m already liking this episode waaay more than the last couple. They’re actually building some real tension here, and all these shots are great. Are they actually trying to evoke Rin’s feeling of discomfort? Is this show trying?

Oh jeez you guys I’m sittin’ up in my chair

3:28 – Animating a fish must suck

3:48 – HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS. LOOK AT THAT OMINOUS SHOT COMPOSITION.  And the split fish shadows dancing on the ground… man, where did THIS show come from?

4:12 – Oh, of course, it’s a dream. That’s perfect – those overwhelming cicadas earlier, now slowly fading into this creeping piano line… all the smudged colors, and the way reality seems to sort of crumble at the edges… alright, Free. Take the stand

4:22 – Well now I’m glad I didn’t do some theme gimmick this week.  Lovely shots left and right

4:39 – This is so great.  A creepy, distinctive setpiece that conveys every single thing we need to know about Rin’s past and motivation with barely a word. KYOANI WHY U TROLL ME LIKE THIS

5:01 – Why are shark teeth a thing 

5:39 – Oh but it is 

6:07 – Gou prattles on about her meaningless shenanigans. Haru’s eyes reside elsewhere.  Soon!

6:33 – “I’ll have their individual swimming styles and data recorded by the time of the match.” Alright, again, that’s great and all, but… this is swimming. You swim your fastest, and the other guy swims his fastest, and the fastest guy wins. Not a whole lot of room for strategic interplay there

6:56 – Rin’s effect on Haru is so strong it activates his hair-tossling automatically 

7:46 – Why are you doing this to yourself?! You’re going down a road I can’t follow, senpai! 

8:19 – Don’t we all?  There’s not a man on this team without some devastating watersports-related baggage

8:59 – Yeah, it’s basically exactly the same as K-On . Last week someone mentioned how male bonding was much more prevalent and overt outside of America’s defensive, screwed-up society, and that makes sense to me. But these characters just don’t ring as teenage males to me – they ring as children, just the way moe SoL characters so often do. It’s a really weird disconnect, and the fact that they’re using it for male characters makes me think this has just become an established rule of the escapist SoL genre. Is it working? I’m kind of blind to moe – are scenes like this successfully making people want to hold these characters’ hands and pinch their cheeks and tell them there aren’t any monsters under the bed?

9:27 – Man this is a weird effect. I’m recognizing Rei’s character so strongly – it’s a weird mixture of glasses-pusher and the direct moe parallel, the authoritative and standoffish but secretly passionate straight-laced type. And Haru is the blank-faced savant, and Rin is the tsundere, and… dear god

9:41 – Is this the plot of the rest of the show?  So, more training, the club will prosper, more slice of life shenanigans, you’ll meet Rin but there will be a conflict and you won’t be able to beat him swimming solo so eventually you’ll meet near the end of the series in the relay and win for real. Did I get it?

9:51 – Not to get 2deep4u or anything, but that’s twice in five minutes that Haru has thought of Rin and then turned to watch an object fly away into the sky. Symbolism!

9:57 – “Matsuoka-senpai, you’re not taking the bus to regionals with everyone else?!” Again Free shows some less-than-graceful exposition

10:29 – This is a conflict I can actually get behind.  It only required one dedicated scene to establish, but it’s fundamental enough that anyone can somewhat understand this character now

11:15 – “I’m going to see my dad.” Also nice. I like that they don’t drag this out with some trashy reveal – that flashback already told us everything, so the show can just move on.

11:24 – Here’s another iteration of that “rookies are useful for narrative” thing – one of the main purposes of Rin’s roommate is simply to give him someone to exposit and react to . Characters monologuing exposition to themselves is pretty ugly

11:54 – They are going crazy with the water  this week

12:45 – Nice parallel with the roommate’s own feelings.  This episode overall isn’t quite living up to those first few minutes, but it’s still a far cry from what this show was last week

13:17 – I love these shots . One of my favorite things about anime. They’re called pillow shots, I believe – they add nothing to the direct narrative, but they convey mood and a sense of space, and work wonders for pacing. A very un-western convention that carries across film, anime, and comics. In this case, they’ve significantly shifted the tone of the show throughout this episode, and here in particular they pull back the focus from the specificity and passion of Rin’s speech to the contemplative wider atmosphere of the early morning in an extremely organic way

13:36 – An absolutely lovely pan.  The scenery looks more like a sketch with watercolors than harsh cells. The bird in flight adds a nice focal point to draw the eye upward and also echoes that reoccuring “object in flight” motif

What happened to this show you guys

14:07 – All of it together now 

14:19 – Pff, you call those bags under your eyes?  Tomoko is not impressed

15:28 – Makoto’s going for a PhD in thoughtful concerned looks 

15:39 – Can you feel the heat?  Cause you can jump in the pool if you want, the first race doesn’t start for an hour

15:55 – Omigod you guys regionals 

16:47 – At least the show also realizes  swimming is an absurd subject for a sports show

17:11 – Gou is best Free . I can’t say I’m thrilled that the moment KyoAni adopt a more angular and less moefied design style, they use it for The Swimming Anime

17:42 – He’ll be publishing his thesis any day now 

18:35 – Oh no he didn’t 

18:56 – Oshit they dropped the bass. Now you KNOW It’s On

19:19 – Makoto stop your body can’t take the strain 

19:28 – Nice shot 

21:32 – That’s right. ALL the water 

And Done

Oh man, intense ending, huh? I guess Haru’s gonna have to start giving a shit if he wants to get on Rin’s level.

Anyway, that episode wasn’t the funniest, but it handily made up for that by being far more visually inspired than I ever remember this show being. New episode director? Either way, I’m all for it, and I’m looking forward to the aftermath of Haru’s sweet, chlorinated tears. If you want to get serious, Free, I am right there with you