Category Archives: Episode Writeup

Symphogear XV – Episode 6

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I am eager to return to Symphogear, where we last left our team in what experts refer to as “some deep shit.” Still bearing the guilt of her recent concert-massacre, Tsubasa lost control during her last battle, and ended up scorching the city while imagining Milaarc around every corner. Meanwhile, the real Milaarc was off terrorizing the group’s most helpless members, as she hunted down Miku and Elfnein. All told, this has not been a proud day for the wielders, and it seems like things are going to get a lot worse before they get better.

That’s all to be expected, though; we’ve hit the halfway point of Symphogear’s final season, so it’s clearly time to put our team through the ringer. With only half a season of Symphogear to go, I’m guessing these episodes will be diving into the show’s most fundamental character conflicts, as we reaffirm the bonds between Hibiki and Miku, Tsubasa and Maria, and Chris plus the babies. At the same time, we also need to square off with the architects of the divine relics, and might even find time for one last high-five with Fine. Our schedule of narratives to resolve is stuffed to the brim, so let’s not waste any more time, as we return to the explosive drama of SYMPHOGEAR!!!

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Bodacious Space Pirates – Episode 15

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At long last, the moment has finally arrived. From its very first episode, Bodacious Space Pirates has been promising an absurd mixture of high schoolers and space derring-do, echoing the heady and largely anime-specific combination exemplified by titans like Girls und Panzer, or like a dozen different ‘80s cybercrime OVAs. “Cute girls and scifi stuff” might stand as anime’s most enduring promise – directors across anime history have noted the necessity of “mecha and moe,” whether they’re lauding this trend or raging against it.

Rather than an absurdist stretch, Bodacious Space Pirates is actually one of the more grounded examples of the form. Frequently, it’s just sort of a default anime assumption that everyone is going to be young, beautiful, and wildly out of their depth, with only the occasional Evangelion wondering why this is the state of affairs. But Space Pirates’ own characters are surprised and amused by its improbable turns, lending the show a sense of realistic weight and self-effacing humor that amplify its distinct appeal. Space Pirates never indulges in the pandering its title might imply; it is as respectful of its female characters as it is of its hard scifi mechanics, drawing deadpan comedy out of the contrast between its concept and execution. The show’s straight-faced tonal contradictions are never more prominent or hilarious than when Marika is leading the yacht club to glory, so I’m eager to see her new crew board the Bentenmaru. Let’s get to the action!

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86 – Episode 6

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m immensely eager to dive back into 86, given how its last episode upended everything we thought we knew. First off, we at last learned the full truth regarding what happened to Lena’s father, as well as her connection with Shin’s brother Rei. The consequences of Lena’s childhood journey to the front lines basically set the course of her life until now – having lost her father, but gained a lift debt to the 86, it seems only natural that she’d attempt to live up to Rei’s example.

But as it turns out, Rei is also still guiding Shin’s actions, in the most morbid way possible. As the episode’s second half revealed, the Legion have been using the brains of dead soldiers to replace their mechs’ aging processing units, and thus prolonging their fighting capacity. As a result, the Alba’s confidence in the Legion’s obsolescence is entirely unfounded, and they’re quite likely on track to lose this war. And on a more personal level, it seems clear that Shin’s brother is serving as one of the “Shepherds” with fully working brains, directing the battle against his own former teammates.

At the moment, Shin seems determined to live only long enough to ensure his brother can rest in peace. He has no unrealistic pretensions of escaping his fate as a soldier, and no hope of this war ever ending. Shin’s perspective is frankly reasonable – but in a situation like this, you sometimes need an unreasonable person like Lena to keep you going. Her entirely unwarranted optimism and idealism are a precious resource, a hope flowering in the most inhospitable soil. With so much of their past now revealed, I’m eager to see how Lena and Shin’s relationship develops from here!

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Scum’s Wish – Episode 3

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re diving back into the thorny drama of Scum’s Wish, a show whose second episode was kind enough to answer basically all my complaints about its premiere. After the show’s first episode presented the world as conceived by Hana’s melodramatic mindscape, the second was quick to puncture her bubble, complicating the situation with the introduction of Moca and Ecchan. With a strong social irritant like Moca in the mix, Hana and Mugi are both revealing new facets of their personalities, becoming more convincingly realized with their every argument.

Meanwhile, Ecchan seems like an emotional disaster area in her own right, and is blitzkrieging her way into the drama lips-first. Hana hasn’t demonstrated romantic feelings for anyone but Kanai, but given her feelings for Kanai are a childish sort of puppy-love in the first place, it’s hard to say where her story will turn. Both Hana and Mugi are reveling in adolescent fantasies of idealized, “destined” romances, and both of them are in for some hard lessons as they develop into their young adult selves.

When we’re young, we treat every romantic event and feeling as iconic and significant, because we benefit from the rush of novelty and the absence of experience. Currently, each of our leads believe their crushes are the only choices for them, because they have been the only choices up until now. But with other suitors intruding on both of them, the insubstantiality of “destiny” will make itself known soon enough. The question then becomes, with so much of their identity wrapped up in their infatuations, who are Hana and Mugi when you set those feelings aside? I’m eager to see our leads grapple with these questions, so let’s get right to the action!

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The Demon Girl Next Door – Episode 2

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be returning to The Demon Girl Next Door, for a very clear and obvious reason: the first episode was delightful, and I’d like to see more of it. Yuko has already proven herself to be a charming mess of a heroine, and it seems like Momo’s combination of wry amusement and deadpan delivery will make for a perfect contrast with her “nemesis.”

At the same time, the show’s assumption of “destined roles” for demons and magical girls, as well as its offhandedly class-aware framework for this dichotomy, seem to imply it may be interested in grappling with the same questions of feminine agency articulated by shows like Madoka Magica. The magical girl genre often features inspirational stories of solidarity and personal growth, but it can easily be used to cast a light on the systems that bind young women, with even ostensibly “lighthearted” shows like Pretty Cure frequently tackling these issues. I’ll be intrigued to see if Demon Girl continues to complicate its thematic subtext, but for now, I’m also happy just to watch Yuko trip and fall on her face repeatedly. Let’s get to it!

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The Woman Called Fujiko Mine – Episode 10

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I am eager to return to The Woman Called Fujiko Mine, which most recently offered one of its most fascinating episodes so far. The tale of the woman who’d become a tattooed piece of art clearly had a special resonance for Fujiko. Fujiko spent her childhood in the captivity of Count Armeid, and has since then seems to have defined herself in opposition to that captivity: where Armeid prized delicacy, obedience, and chastity, Fujiko has defined herself as an embodiment of independence and proud sexual agency.

Of course, Fujiko would undoubtedly hate to be told that her identity is still defined by a man’s influence, even if only through opposition to that influence. But when presented with the tattooed woman, Fujiko couldn’t help but see herself – and thus strove manically to kill this girl, almost destroying herself in the process. Some traumas are too painful to confront directly, but Fujiko has never been one to back down from a challenge. If she truly wants to untangle herself from Armeid’s influence, she will likely have to confront her nemesis, and prove to herself that the shadows of the past can never reclaim her. But however today’s adventure goes, I’m eager to spend more time with Fujiko and the rest of these rapscallions. Let’s get to it!

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Space Battleship Yamato 2199 – Episode 8

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The universe beckons! Having made their last farewells to the known world, the Yamato’s intrepid crew now set their sights starward, as they move beyond the boundaries of our known solar system. Fearsome terrors beyond our imagining surely await them, yet our gallant heroes are undeterred, and proudly bear the weight of humanity’s future. What secrets await beyond the celestial shroud? That is for our brave sailors to discover, as they chart a course beyond the horizon.

Man, I could probably write a whole essay in that voice, though I’m sure it’d get tiresome after a paragraph or two. Regardless, I’m delighted to announce that we are indeed returning to Space Battleship Yamato! Last episode offered a clear denouement for the story’s first act, as the crew’s victories in our solar system were capped off by a line-crossing ceremony that saw them moving beyond the reach of terrestrial communication. After all the action theatrics of the first act, an episode that explored the motivations and relationships of the core crew was quite welcome; but with all that foundational character-building work covered, I’m eager to see what obstacles Matsumoto conjures up next. Space Battleship Yamato embodies a spirit of fantastical possibility, fusing iconic presentation with outlandish invention to bring its audience back to the wide-eyed wonder of childhood. Its world has won me over entirely, so let’s not waste any more time, and return to the bridge post-haste!

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Anne of Green Gables – Episode 3

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be returning to Anne of Green Gables, and I couldn’t be happier about it. I’ve actually been looking forward to this return for most of a week now; the show has already captured my imagination, offering a window into a sedate yet beautiful world, where the peaceful mastery of Montgomery and Takahata intertwine.

Many of anime’s finest attractions advertise themselves with great fanfare, promising dazzling animation highlights and stories like nothing you’ve seen. Anne of Green Gables is more my speed: a work of extraordinary craft that still sees the mundane as worthy of attention, helping to reacquaint us with the beauty of the living world, and the profundity of small acts of kindness. I feel at home in its lovingly painted hills, and comforted by the presence of its humbly human characters. Productions this generous are an odd quirk of history, borne of production conditions that ebb and subside, never to return. I am thus thankful it exists at all, and doubly thankful to be exploring it with you readers. Let’s return to the rolling fields of Green Gables!

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Eureka Seven – Episode 8

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be diving back into a property that we last touched five goddamn years ago, as we return to the long-dormant Eureka Seven. It’s been so long since we watched Eureka Seven that my last episode’s writing style feels almost unrecognizable, so yes, this is a pretty weird feeling for me. That said, I still have a pretty clear recollection of Renton’s journey so far, and can’t imagine we’ll have too much trouble getting reacquainted with the Gekkostate and its many strange inhabitants. Emerging from the earth to claw at the sky, let’s celebrate the reanimation of Eureka Seven!

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Adachi and Shimamura – Episode 12

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I have some bittersweet news, as we’ll soon be reaching the end of a delightful journey, and leaving some friends behind. Yes, it’s time at last to watch the conclusion of Adachi and Shimamura, and see if these two mixed-up kids are gonna make it out okay.

Of course, it’s unlikely that this episode is going to feel truly definitive in its resolution of our heroines’ drama. For one thing, the light novel series this show is based on just released a new volume five days ago. But more importantly, Adachi and Shimamura are still a great distance away from true emotional honesty, or even a comfortable understanding of themselves.

This isn’t their fault, obviously; I mean, they’re high schoolers, how well could they know themselves? But it’s a credit to Hitoma Iruma’s storytelling that I can already see the road sprawling out beyond them, the hills they’ll traverse and hurdles they’ll encounter on the way. Adachi and Shimamura are imperfect and unsure in resoundingly human ways, and at all times, their story has emphasized that our identities are not fixed points.

The Adachi and Shimamura we met at the beginning of this story are quite different from the Adachi and Shimamura we now know, or the ones we might meet in the future. The easy, ignorant solace of their first few encounters has been lost; they each know too much about the other, and have each grown in their own way. Adachi has gained the confidence to act on behalf of her desires, while Shimamura has begun to feel like she has desires, after a long period of emotional dormancy. The desire for intimacy and inevitability of change have set our heroines on a tumultuous course, but their feelings for each other have held strong. Let’s join Adachi and Shimamura for one last time!

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