Category Archives: Episode Writeup

The Legend of Vox Machina S3 – Episode 12

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be delving back into the adventures of Vox Machina and company, as they work to defeat the evil that they themselves kinda-sorta accidentally unleashed. Isn’t that always the way of it, though? You defeat one evil dragon, think you’ve done something good, and then some entirely other evil dragon decides to fuse itself with the corpse of your quarry, becoming a dread-creature of power beyond imagining. It’s enough to make a hero want to hang up their +2 sword and just take a load off, letting someone else save civilization as we know it for a change.

There’s certainly an inherent tension in the construction of a D&D campaign, a balance necessitated by the party’s simultaneous need for heroic validation and dramatic incentive. How do you as a DM keep going bigger while still validating the party’s prior process, telling them in the same breath “that was some glorious, consequential heroism you just did” and “also, things are now worse than ever before.” At what point do unintended consequences shift from feeling “earned through recklessness” to “inflicted by a hostile narrator,” and how do you manage that balance while both surprising and validating your party’s expectations? These are questions whose answers depend on a million factors, and which must be approached with a distinct tactic for any given player party – and that very variability is what makes DnD so endlessly interesting to me as a storyteller and game designer. No puzzle so compelling as one without a defined solution, so let’s get back to the board as we conclude season three of Vox Machina!

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Dear Brother – Episode 13

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today the bells are calling from the tower of Seiren Academy, where Saint Juste is presumably even now flinging daggers at the wall, lost in a reverie of abandonment and exquisite squalor. Down below, Kaoru-no-Kimi confronts the imperious Miya-sama, their forms concealed beneath the wafting bows of the sacred elm. And all along the windows and walls, voices chatter and eyes lurk, each confrontation a feast for their ravenous peers.

So, you know, classic high school stuff. Yes, we are indeed returning to Dear Brother, and at a moment of uniquely fraught drama no less. Incensed by her heartless treatment of Saint Juste, Kaoru has called Miya-sama out, and revealed at last that Saint Juste is actually Miya-sama’s younger sister. Considering this drama’s consistent focus on lineage and propriety, I imagine that their relationship in some way echoes Nanako’s fractured family life; and given Saint Juste’s current residence inside that alienating apartment, I would assume it’s not just Miya-sama who has abandoned her. Let’s see what fresh revelations await as we return to Dear Brother!

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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End – Episode 16

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today the northern road beckons, as we settle down with our trusted traveling companions for an episode of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End. What dangers lie ahead are unknown to us, but that’s really the beauty of long journeys; the ever-shifting scenery reminds us of both the vastness and inconstancy of the world around us, its capacity for transition, transformation, and renewal. And perhaps, by letting the road carry us forward and embracing the surprises it brings, we might hope to be transformed as well.

Our last episode offered some fine opportunities for personal reassessment, as Sein took a rare leadership role within the party, and Stark learned the finer points of courtly etiquette. Stark’s assignment saw him pantomiming the past to protect the future, offering the people a false assurance of their prince’s vitality, and through doing so acquiring a key memory of his own: himself and Fern on the dance floor, turning their torturous practice into a celebration of their bond. We cannot know what treasures might lie in store, and that is precisely why we must be open to experience, with eyes scanning the horizon rather than lodged in a grimoire. You hear that, Frieren? That one was pretty pointed, I’m sure you know I’m talking about you.

Alright, let’s get to the show.

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Shoushimin Series – Episode 7

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I imagine we’ll be embarking on a fresh mystery, as we join Osanai and Jogoro for another installment of the sharp, endearing, and immaculately constructed Shoushimin Series. Though our leads retain their commitment to becoming normal, they continue to prove themselves anything but, with even the simple act of sharing some cakes turning into a tense battle of wills. But hey, how else do you apply your restless intellect to a hot summer day, especially when you’ve got such a willing opponent beside you?

By winnowing this show down to its fundamentals, our last episode reveled in the profound chemistry of its leads, echoing the similarly charming duo adventures of author Honobu Yonezawa’s Hyouka. Of course, that comparison also points to the clear differences within these series – while Oreki and Chitanda find a soothing balance in their differences, Osanai and Jogoro are united by their similarly slanted perspective, their desire to bring order to a disorderly world. In their hands, a cake-centered riff on Rope becomes something like a courtship ritual, their one-upmanship demonstrating both their shared mentality and mutual respect. Shoushimin Series has many strengths, but its most fundamental is the essential truth of great romance from Toradora to Spice and Wolf to Hyouka and beyond: spending time with two well-illustrated characters who genuinely care about each other is a delight, no matter where they go or whatever they do there. Now let’s get to the case!

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Yaiba: Samurai Legend – Episode 6

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to check back in on the freewheeling adventures of Yaiba, Sayaka, and their increasingly bizarre companions, as we screen a fresh episode of Yaiba: Samurai Legend. When last we left off, Onimaru’s ominous octet of oni had been largely dismantled, mainly owing to the fact that none of them were particularly threatening or malevolent in the first place. Seriously, a sea cucumber? Onimaru, I don’t know what you were expecting.

All of that felt perfectly in line with Yaiba’s fast-paced, lighthearted spin on shonen drama, a style that calls to mind the rambling, playful early days of Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball. With much of modern shonen aspiring to a self-seriousness their narratives cannot begin to justify, it’s refreshing to see a show that’s just having fun with the template, offering endearingly non-threatening villains and then eagerly inviting them to join the good guys. And of course, all of this is made far more appealing through the kinetic animation and lush background design of Takahiro Hasui’s impressive adaptation, which is clearly and effectively conjuring the nostalgic aesthetics of ‘80s anime. I’m all for this reappropriation of dormant yet enduringly compelling styles, and eager to see what nonsense Aoyama cooks up next. Let’s get to it!

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CITY the Animation – Episode 4

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today the sun is shining on a crisp October day here in the city, the kind of day that invokes a natural yearning to get out there and savor the countless tiny stories of a community in motion. Well, I gotta finish this here article before I do that, but fortunately we are today visiting another of my favorite cities, as we return to the aptly named CITY the Animation.

The combination of Keiichi Arawi’s madcap storytelling and Kyoto Animation’s utterly breathtaking adaptation have so far made for one of this year’s greatest and most distinctive pleasures, a perpetual celebration of community, creativity, and the fundamental joy of motion. The clear enthusiasm this team has brought to this production is infectious, elevating every ridiculous pratfall and non-sequitur into a fond salute to life’s incidental, unexpected pleasures. Let’s see what new soft-hearted silliness they’ve got in store for us as we head back to the city!

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BanG Dream! Ave Mujica – Episode 9

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to the sumptuous nightmare that is Ave Mujica, as Sakiko and her companions seek love and validation in all the worst possible places. When last we’d left off, a reunion performance by CRYCHIC had threatened to actually improve our characters’ mental health, allowing them to venerate and say goodbye to their past passions while charting a new way forward. Well, we clearly couldn’t have that, so Umiri swiftly suggested a reunion for Ave Mujica as well, having recently developed a taste for meaningful, mutually fulfilling group performance.

Umiri picked a heck of a time to propose this plan, and perhaps the least likely group to propose it for; even with her alleged thirty bands, I imagine the least healthy among them is still in better shape than Ave Mujica. Her words sparked a hope of survival in Mortis, who frankly also deserves better than all of this nonsense, and thus we are again off to the races, with Umiri promising to teach Mortis the guitar and make her “real” in the process. And while Umiri’s “dark side” turned out to be no more than the yearning for connection that defines all of these girls, we’ve still got an Uika-shaped time bomb ticking away, undoubtedly prepped to explode into a fresh field of psychological shrapnel. Let’s see who snaps first as we return to Ave Mujica!

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Rock is a Lady’s Modesty – Episode 6

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re storming the gates of high society with a battalion of rebellious rock tunes, as our heroines Lilisa and Otoha continue their dual lives as elegant young ladies and sneering rock gods. When last we left off, the two had just secured a pair of key victories, guiding a mild-mannered symphonic group into a rousing performance that affirmed their stage-ready skills. This in turn won Lilisa the support of her stepsister Alice, who was dazzled by the confidence and authenticity Lilisa could evoke in her true element.

While that performance was certainly a great success for our leads, it also has me wondering precisely what depths this series is interested in delving into, be they cultural, psychological, or otherwise. Rock here is defined largely as “authenticity,” or perhaps more specifically as a “lack of social propriety,” but rebelling purely because you don’t want to dress up and make nice is still defining yourself according to the expectations of your assumed social stature. You can’t make a character study out of two shallow veneers; if Lady’s Modesty wants to foster substantive emotional drama, it will need to dig deeper into the feelings and experiences that have driven its cast to their current perspectives. If, on the other hand, it wants to explore music as a unifying or even liberatory cultural force, it will likely need to elaborate on its philosophy of rock beyond “fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me.” Regardless, Lilisa’s always a pleasure to hang out with, so I’m sure we’ll find something to talk about as we charge through Rock is a Lady’s Modesty!

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Big Windup! – Episode 20

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today rain beats down on the first match of the summer tournament, as our boys from Nishiura strive to overcome the first-seated Tosei team. After managing to eke out a two-run lead across the first few innings, they were put on the backfoot by their technically superior opponents, who tightened their strategy to secure two runs of their own. With the score now tied as the innings dwindle, it’s looking like the surprise factor that carried Nishiura to early success has thoroughly run out.

Well, that’s at least one version of the story. Another concerns the growing confidence of Nishiura pitcher Mihashi, a certainty of his value that is proving infectious enough to raise the spirits and mutual trust of his entire team. Another version might prioritize the game’s information war; not only do Nishiura have far superior batting data, they also have an ace batter who’s figured out the opposing pitcher’s tells. And another might prioritize the shifting physical conditions of the battlefield; both the rain itself and its effect on the field’s texture, which has so far both inhibited Tosei’s pitcher and given Nishiura’s catcher more tools to manipulate. Asa Higuchi has constructed a marvelous multiplanar diorama of tactically grounded conflict, demonstrating the many hidden layers of this ostensibly straightforward sport, and through doing so offered us a competition that thrills and satisfies anew with each subsequent at-bat. Let’s get back to the battle!

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Monogatari Off/Monster Season – Episode 8

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re continuing our journey through what I can safely say falls on the “Monster” side of Monogatari’s Off/Monster Season collection, given both its protagonists are either alleged or self-defined monsters. On the one hand we have Deathtopia, an immortal vampire bound only by the proud weight of her own words. On the other, we have Acerola, an unwilling “princess” who brings ruin to all, and wishes only for a single life to save.

Whether they consider them a curse or blessing, both have clearly been isolated by their powers. Deathtopia had spent so much time in her lonely castle that it fell to her servant to inform her the kingdom had fallen, while Acerola’s quest for redemption has only brought more lives to ruin, raising the question of whether her existence itself is a curse. Yet in spite of the fantastical nature of their afflictions, their story echoes a familiar Monogatari refrain: the necessity of coming to peace with your own nature, of learning to love yourself, to accept all your sharp angles, and thereby reach beyond your own torment and positively impact the life of another. Let’s see how our vampire and death princess are fairing!

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