Category Archives: Episode Writeup

Adachi and Shimamura – Episode 10

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Hello everyone, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to dive back into Adachi and Shimamura, as our beleaguered heroines continue to inch closer to each other. Valentine’s Day turned out to be an unmitigated success, with Shimamura’s feelings for Adachi coming across even more clearly in contrast. After a day of nostalgia and melancholy spent with her old friend Tarumi, retracing the same steps with Adachi fostered some very different feelings. Rather than introducing the prospect of a love rival, Tarumi ultimately ended up reaffirming how Adachi is genuinely special to Shimamura.

Of course, that was just one of last episode’s many rewards. The Tarumi meetup also offered an opportunity for Shimamura to reflect on her shifting identity, as she lamented the pain of reaching out to her prior, “incomplete” self. The person Tarumi sought was a stranger even to Shimamura – but ultimately, Shimamura decided that the friction of attempting to restore these once-sundered bonds was worth it. Where Shimamura would have once discarded both Tarumi and Adachi when they became an emotional burden, she is now making a genuine effort, and working to maintain the relationships that are important to her. That in turn reflects the fact that she cares now – these bonds providing genuine comfort, partially dispelling the grey malaise that has characterized her unchanging days. Shimamura has made tremendous progress, and I’m eager to see how her dynamic with Adachi changes now that she actually wants things again. Let’s find out!

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Scum’s Wish – Episode 1

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be embarking on a brand new journey, as we check out the first episode of the 2017 drama Scum’s Wish. I recall a fair degree of buzz regarding the Scum’s Wish manga, with the story making waves for its willingness to engage with the emotional and physical messiness of teenage sexuality. In a field that frequently sanitizes relationships to the point where a chaste kiss is the ultimate expression of sexual fervor, Scum’s Wish acknowledges that teens are horny, and often express that horniness in self-destructive ways.

As for the production, we’ve got Masaomi Andou serving as director, whose projects all tend to feature a few common signatures. The most obvious indicator that you’re in an Andou production is the proliferation of screen-in-screen shots, where a character reaction, physical action, or some other variable is illustrated through smaller boxes layered on top of the original image. This technique tends to create a distinct sense of flow in his works, as well as the sense of a “moving comic” that is a bit closer to manga than film. Andou balances this visual signature with an otherwise restrained, almost conservative approach to direction, generally favoring clear, wide shots over angled or aggressive cinematography. Given this is a manga adaptation, I assume that’ll all translate to a rigorously manga-loyal adaptation, with his flourishes almost recreating the paneling of the source material.

Alright, I think that covers everything I know about this property and production. Let’s get to it!

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Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 46

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re going to be taking it easy for a little while, by returning to the proudly low-stakes drama of Pokemon Sun and Moon. In spite of Lusamine’s best efforts to introduce some genuine narrative momentum to this production, last episode mostly just involved Starcloud teleporting the crew to a bevy of island hot spots (some more literal than others), along with the requisite dollop of Team Rocket trying hard and failing spectacularly. Ash promised to raise this little eldritch beast, but it’s clear that not even Starcloud can control Starcloud’s powers, and thus the potential for disaster remains high.

That’s all fine by me! I’m down for adventure and also down for relaxation, so whichever way the wind blows, I’ll be sure to adjust my beach chair and continue enjoying the Alolan summer. Good company can make any activity a treat, and Sun and Moon’s crew is about the best company we could hope for. Let’s all lean back and enjoy another lazy afternoon beneath the Alolan sun!

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Toradora! – Episode 8

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Having survived Toradora!’s darkest hour, we arrive at an episode that announces itself with one of the franchise’s greatest assets: Minori Kushieda, and her inexhaustible inventory of weird noises.

Minorin’s Whole Deal is one of the most compelling ways Toradora! pushes back against anime romance convention. For as complex as they are, Taiga and Ami still resemble recognizable archetypes – in contrast, Minori is both weird and intelligent in ways that aren’t often recognized in anime, much less framed in the context of the “perfect romantic ideal.” Minori is always too unabashedly herself to fade into her narrative role, always doing things that push others out of their comfort zones, and steering the narrative when you might expect her to be stepping aside. As we’ve discussed, her play-acting is ultimately its own kind of defensiveness, but her behavior is unique in a way that makes her feel far more alive and distinctive than many romantic heroines.

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ODDTAXI – Episode 8

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Tensions are rising across ODDTAXI as the Halloween celebrations continue. Out in the streets, Taichi is racing through the crowd with his prize: fresh footage of Dobu up to his usual tricks. Of course, this very act of violence was predicated by Taichi’s own witch hunt, when he blamed Dobu for a shooting he had no involvement in. But to the internet, invented and authentic monsters are equally worthy of condemnation – and if social media’s ire clings to you long enough, you’re sure to create your own crucifixion-worthy rap sheet.

Of all possible holidays, Halloween has to be the perfect choice for ODDTAXI. In many ways, the holiday echoes the form and appeal of online engagement. We all go out into a fabricated, liminal space between our mundane real-world expectations, a world born of our collective desires. In this place, we wear the masks of strangers, using anonymity to protect ourselves from shame or consequences as we embrace strange new selves. And yet, even as our costumes protect us, we seek out intimacy, community, and joy – all the hallmarks of earnest connection, somehow more reachable behind a stranger’s face.

In this place we can dance and run wild, uninhibited and free, at least until the morning comes. We can bellow out our fears in a full voice, or lay claim to desires we could never speak aloud, held safe from consequence by our garish disguises. We can even claim community through these vestments, dressing in the trappings of our gods and idols, and thereby signaling our unity of passion and purpose. Halloween provides an evening of inauthentic presentation and authentic passion, a dreamscape where your fantasies can be realized – so long as you do not lose yourself entirely, and remember to awaken in your own skin.

ODDTAXI is a show for those who regret that waking, as well as those who only see tragedy in our vigorously mediated connections. In the face of a world that demands perpetual performance, it lingers on the moments between viral posts, and the quiet desperation of seeking intimacy through platforms designed for commerce and competition. The intoxication of Halloween revelry is a heady but fleeting high, and for ODDTAXI’s heroes, this night promises more terror than release. With the festivities already in full swing, let’s return to the streets.

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Anne of Green Gables – Episode 1

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I feel privileged to begin a journey through Anne of Green Gables, one of the shimmering jewels of the World Masterpiece Theater program. The World Masterpiece Theater program ran for decades, typically selecting acclaimed works of global literature, and animating them with an eye for authenticity and general appeal. The program is frankly one of the greatest achievements of anime as an art form, and tragically has no successor in the modern era – these days, adapted animation of global literature tends to focus on characters like Batman or Darth Vader, rather than children’s literary classics.

Of course, rich and poignant source material still requires delicate execution; fortunately, in its peak years, the World Masterpiece Theater program was spearheaded by the future scions of Studio Ghibli. Anne of Green Gables was directed by Isao Takahata, who comfortably stands as my favorite Ghibli director, and also one of my favorite directors period. Through films like Only Yesterday, Grave of the Fireflies, and Pom Poko, Takahata captures both the quiet beauty of natural life, as well as the unmitigated harshness of life’s cruelty and disappointment.

I imagine his instincts will be a natural fit for a pastoral drama like Anne, and he’s accompanied by his closest and best collaborators. Hayao Miyazaki serves as Anne’s setting and layout manager, while Yoshifumi Kondo is serving as character designer and animation director. Miyazaki requires no introduction, while Kondo stands alongside Satoshi Kon as one of our most tragically short-lived masters – the director of Whisper of the Heart, he was intended to be Takahata and Miyazaki’s successor at Ghibli.

Anne’s staff ranks are undoubtedly suffused with more luminaries from across anime history, but I’m eager to get to the show. The Ghibli-led Masterpiece Theater era represents one of the clear high points in anime history, an intermingling of literary substance and animation talent that has rarely been matched since. I’ve been holding off on this anime treasure trove for too long, and am thrilled to have so much Takahata work before me. Let’s get to it!

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Summer 2021 – Week 9 in Review

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to the site! How are all your weeks going? I’ve personally been working harder than ever, and actually feeling pretty good about it. By pushing most of my weekly busywork tasks from the weekend to the week proper, I’ve reassigned my weekends to more long-form projects, and thus have been making great strides in articles on Spirit Circle and Toradora. I’m looking forward to releasing those, but in the meantime, we munched through some interesting feature films, as well as an excellent recent cartoon. Let’s check ‘em out!

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Big Windup! – Episode 6

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Hello folks, and welcome the heck back to Wrong Every Time. You all ready for some baseball? When last we left off, Mihashi and his new teammates had at last pulled ahead of his former team, securing two runs while Mihashi maintained his clean shutout. Mihashi’s actual skill level was always clear to opposing pitcher Kanou, and with his teammates refusing to see it, Kanou’s nerve was badly shaken. In fact, he almost got in a fight with his catcher Hatake, before their reliable ace and apparent mediator Oda cleared everyone’s heads.

Things have been going smoothly so far, but that’s largely been a result of the Mihoshi team not taking this match seriously. With Kanou now having made clear just how much this match means to him, his teammates have rallied to his side, and Mihashi will now be facing a far more motivated opposing lineup. Even Momoe recognized the fraught nature of this moment, urging Abe to protect his pitcher the best he can. Mihashi is currently like a bright-eyed baby bird on the verge of leaving the nest, and it’s up to Abe to keep him from being… perforated with emotional buckshot? I dunno, that metaphor kinda got away from me. Regardless, we’re at a critical moment, and I’m eager to see these teams face off at full strength. Let’s get to the field!

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Bodacious Space Pirates – Episode 14

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today, if weather permits, I was thinking about taking a brief space flight, and perhaps checking in on the crew of the Bentenmaru.

Last episode saw Marika solidifying her alliance with the Serenity royal family, by which I mean she invited the princesses to her house for dinner. Marika possesses a unique combination of amiability and confidence that makes it easy for her to disarm basically anyone, turning political negotiations and pirate standoffs alike into conversations between friends. She is a master of drawing others into her pace, and as the leader of a crew of rowdy rapscallions, that skill is likely even more important than her general competency and intelligence.

Of course, Marika is at her best when she has a Spock to balance her inherent Kirk-ness – thus I’m hoping this episode will see the return of Chiaki, and more delightful bickering between our main pair. But whatever the future holds, I’m sure we’re in for a pleasant time as we return to Bodacious Space Pirates!

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Adachi and Shimamura – Episode 9

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It’s just one thing after another with these two, isn’t it? It seemed like we were making some genuine progress through their Christmas date, but then Adachi pulled her usual disappearing act, resurfacing just in time to get anxious all over again about Valentine’s Day. Then, when it seemed the two of them were actually inching towards some sort of mutual understanding, Shimamura’s original Adachi-like lamprey appears, eager to rekindle a personal relationship with her. Considering Adachi’s profound insecurities regarding her importance to Shimamura, I imagine we’re in for a real charnel house of a Valentine’s Day celebration.

That said, our leads have made some key, undeniable steps forward in terms of their psychological conflicts. Both of them have admitted that the other’s presence has “returned some color” to their world, a clear enough metaphor for rising above the muffling haze of depression. Additionally, they’re each starting to recognize the differences in how they perceive each other; Adachi understands that Shimamura doesn’t reciprocate her overwhelming passion, while Shimamura is doing her best to respect Adachi’s intense feelings. They’re close enough now that the idea of genuinely honest conversation is no longer a distant dream – so of course, here comes Tarumi to throw a wrench in the works. Let’s wince our way through the fallout for another episode of Adachi and Shimamura!

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