Category Archives: Episode Writeup

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 5

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Hello everyone, and I hope you’re ready for another episode of Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! Today I am consumed by even more anticipation than usual, as unlike every other episode since the premiere, I actually haven’t watched this one myself yet. Yes, scandalous, I know.

Eizouken’s fourth episode seemed like a clear endpoint for the “first act” of this production, as our three young creators both created and debuted their first finished work, earning themselves an actual club budget in the process. “Hold That Machete Tight!” was a stunning demonstration of all three of their talents: Asakusa’s evocative designs, Mizusaki’s fluid and personality-infused animation, and Kanamori’s ability to wrangle her unfocused and overly ambitious friends into working on something they can actually finish. Their production managed to simultaneously embody all the shortcuts they had to embrace to actually finish, while also demonstrating the indescribable magic of seeing your creative ideas come to life. I imagine the team will be setting their sights even higher for their second production, and I can’t wait to see what dark corners of the creative process this show illuminates next. Let’s get back to Eizouken!

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Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 5

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Why It Works. As the winter season continues its grisly course, today I’d like to once more escape from the muck and snow of my own chilly New England, off to the sun-kissed beaches and alluring jungles of Alola. Pokemon Sun and Moon has been a delightful ride so far, with its colorful, intricate background art and playful, expressive animation combining to create an aesthetic experience as joyous and energizing as Pokemon itself.

In narrative terms, the show’s mostly just been introducing key characters so far, though that process has of course been accompanied with plenty of small individual narratives and Pokemon battles. Sun and Moon’s overall structure seems most closely aligned with the slice of life genre; the focus is on having fun with friends, and though Ash is technically determined to become a Pokemon master, that goal currently seems roughly as realistic as Yui’s dreams of Budokan. “Fun with friends” also seems to be this show’s thematic heart – Ash loses more often than he wins, and thus finding satisfaction and camaraderie in simply competing is consistently emphasized. It’s a fine lesson for this show’s presumed audience, but I’ll be interested in seeing if the show complicates its narrative, now that most of the key players have presumably been introduced. Either way, it’s cold here and I’m ready for the beach, so let’s get back to Sun and Moon!

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Chihayafuru S3 – Episode 17

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AW SHIT YOU GUYS THE MOMENT IS HERE. After dedicating roughly half the season to building up this year’s challenger matches, the time has finally come for Suo and Shinobu to defend their thrones. Recent episodes have revealed both the competitive strengths and clear emotional vulnerabilities of karuta’s two reigning champions, while also building up both Harada and Haruka as scrappy and profoundly sympathetic challengers.

I’m worried for both of them, frankly. Having recently lost to Chihaya, I’m not sure Haruka has what it takes to match Shinobu – and considering how badly his Arata match taxed Harada’s body, I’m not sure he’s physically capable of matching Suo, either. What this frankly might come down to is the current temperament of karuta’s two champions – whether Shinobu is currently in peak emotional form, and whether Harada’s aggressive style actually rattles Suo, or simply ends up playing into his fault-centric strategy. Both Harada and Haruka are facing much younger opponents with highly tuned physical skills; I’d like to believe experience can trump these advantages, but these are some true monsters they’re battling. I’ve hyped this fight long enough, so let’s get right into the action. IT’S TIME FOR THE MASTER AND QUEEN BATTLES!

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Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 4

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We’ve not a moment to lose, everyone. At this very moment, I could already be watching Eizouken’s fourth episode – it’s only the tragic necessity of offering some framing to these notes articles that keeps me from the golden glow of its animated splendor. Having already watched this episode once, it already feels like a genuine contender for the best episode of anime about the anime-creating process that I’ve ever seen. To be honest, there aren’t that many contenders – there’s one specific episode of Paranoia Agent in contention, and aside from that, the consistent excellence of Shirobako.

But while Shirobako stands as a remarkable collective love letter to the full production process, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an episode get as deeply in the weeds of cost-saving animation techniques, production compromises, and editor-animator dialogue as this, nor illustrate the final product with such tangible awe at the wonder of creating something with your own hands. Eizouken’s fourth episode might actually be its best episode yet, and I’ve run out of patience waiting to revisit it. HERE WE GO!

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Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 3

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Alright everyone, we are bounding right back into Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken. This show’s first two episodes were both dazzling marvels of creativity and charm, simultaneously succeeding as an energetic slice of life and a loving celebration of the animation process. From its gorgeous backgrounds and fanciful dream sequences to its endearing and endlessly expressive leads, Yuasa’s latest is an embarrassment of riches on all fronts, and also about as much of a Me narrative as he could have possibly picked. I love small-scale, affectionate character stories like this, and I also love stories that directly interrogate the creative process; seeing one of my very favorite directors working on something so close to my heart is an incredible feeling. Without further ado, let’s get back to Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

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Chihayafuru S3 – Episode 16

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Well everyone, I believe it’s high time for some Chihayafuru. When last we left off, we’d transitioned from the rapid-fire matches of the challenger tournament to a brief training period, with all of our leads stewing in the emotional blowback of that tournament’s conclusion. With Arata having finally confessed to Chihaya, the tone of fraught but unstated romantic longing that has defined Chihayafuru for so long has at been disrupted, and even Taichi is able to tell something is different. Chihaya’s understanding of romance is basically non-existent, but Arata’s confession has already turned into a source of strength on the one field she truly cares about – when falling back into her old self-doubting patterns, it was his face that returned her to focusing on her current Suo match.

Taichi’s window to choose his own future seems to be rapidly closing, but at the moment, we’ve got a more pressing concern: Suo declaring that Chihaya isn’t allowed to be Queen. He might simply be stating the obvious fact that Chihaya doesn’t “need” to be Queen as badly as the emotionally isolated Shinobu, but given he last predicted Arata would fail, I’m not going to take his sorceries lightly. Let’s ramble on through another episode of Chihayafuru!

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Hugtto! Precure – Episode 12

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Folks, I am very excited to return to Hugtto! Precure! It’s been some time since our last episode, at least from my perspective, but I still remember it quite clearly. Hugtto’s eleventh episode was one of its strongest segments yet, elevating Hana’s relatable anxieties through isolating yet beautiful layouts, and culminating in a fight sequence that somehow embodied the terrifying, inhuman energy of an Evangelion battle. That climax ended on Hana resolving her doubts through a confident declaration of selfhood, as she refused to actually strike down her opponent, and instead chose to express herself through what she’s always done best: cheering people on, and inspiring them to reach their greatest selves.

That conclusion also served as a reiteration of Hugtto’s own themes, from its focus on finding a fulfilling path to careers and adulthood, to its insistence that we are stronger if we build each other up, rather than exploit each other for personal gain. And of course, by framing that contrast in terms of the distinction between the Precures and their corporate-themed antagonists, Hugtto also furthered its perhaps inadvertent message of “fuck capitalism.” I kinda doubt this entirely capitalism-grounded production, which is designed to sell children’s toys, is also promoting a deliberately anti-capitalist message, but hey, inadvertent subtext is also fine with me. Either way, I’m eager to see what Hana and her friends get up to in one more Precure!

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The Big O – Episode 3

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Today I’m thrilled to return to Big O, a turn-of-the-millennium classic that combines noir storytelling tropes, art deco and gothic architecture, and lumbering super robots to arrive at something totally unique, yet roughly reducible to “giant robot Batman.” Using his titular robot companion, negotiator Roger Smith managed to save the android Dorothy from a gang that wanted to make use of her much larger sister, thus ending the show’s two-part introduction on the formation of Roger’s full negotiation team.

Though the narrative parallels and stylistic similarities between The Big O and the much-loved Batman: The Animated Series make comparisons inevitable, The Big O’s first two episodes emphatically demonstrated this is a show with its own wide array of formative influences. The Big O’s action setpieces embrace a style of slow, impactful movements that feels heavily reminiscent of classic kaiju battles, with shots cast through windows or upwards from the city streets, vividly emphasizing the unimaginable scale of giant robot battles. Its music calls back to the early 20th century film styles it’s emulating, while its robot designs combine playful super robot anthropomorphism with imposing gothic arches and buttresses. And even though they weren’t actually spearheaded by the same Sunrise substudios, it’s hard to shake the sense of Cowboy Bebop’s ghost in Paradigm’s dirty streets and huddled passerby (particularly when combined with Steve Blum’s iconic leading voice). But influences aside, The Big O’s first two episodes were plain and simply excellent television, and I’ve wasted more than enough breath getting us all caught back up. Let’s explore The Big O’s third episode!

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Chihayafuru S3 – Episode 15

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Well folks, we’re really in the shit now. After a grueling series of episodes dedicated to the fight for the challenger seat, both Harada and Haruka emerged victorious, proving they can still compete on the highest level. For both of these characters, their final matches turned out to be difficult but ultimately joyous celebrations of the time they’ve spent both with and apart from the sport. In a season that’s consistently emphasized how Chihaya and Taichi’s freedom to only prioritize karuta will end after high school, Harada and Haruka have emphatically demonstrated that growing up and accepting responsibilities apart from the sport need not diminish your passion, or your hunger for the top seat. It’s been an exciting, thematically compelling, and consistently poignant arc, and I’m happy for both of them.

Unfortunately, pretty much exactly the moment Harada declared victory, Arata also declared he was in love with Chihaya. Meanwhile, while pursuing Suo, Taichi oh-so-casually announced that he’s already Chihaya’s boyfriend. The time of competition has ended, and it seems the time for bare knuckle love triangle shenanigans has come. Secure your hard hats and protective goggles, folks – this is gonna get messy.

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Girls’ Last Tour – Episode 12

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Well everyone, the day has come. I’ve been putting off watching this episode for a simple, familiar reason: as long as I don’t actually watch the last Girls’ Last Tour, the show never has to end. The adventures of Yuu and Chi have turned out to be some of the most beautiful, thematically rich, and moving episodes I’ve experienced. Confronted with the last episode, I’m forced to admit how much I don’t want this journey to be over.

Simply following these girls as they traverse the ruins of their great city is an enchanting experience all by itself, mournful and yet also hopeful, with each new episode offering its own visual wonders and artifacts to discover. On top of that, Yuu and Chi’s reflections on this world, unbound by our preconceptions regarding “proper living,” regularly poke at the heart of the human condition, forcing us to reflect on what we believe and pursue, and what will ultimately last. The show’s frank acknowledgment of the ephemeral nature of all things is balanced by its last and greatest strength: the clear and loving bond between Yuu and Chi, a tether protecting them, and also giving all of their adventures meaning and a sense of joy. Lost in a world whose end is inevitable, Yuu and Chi cannot hide behind any promises of future glory or ultimate reward; what joy and solace they find in this place is found each day, in their uncovering of this lost world, and in the love they bring to each other.

It seems a little ironic, then, that I’ve put off this last episode for so long. As Girls’ Last Tour itself states, everything ends, but that should be no cause for despair. Let’s enjoy this last episode, and remember the show fondly, without regrets. What the future holds, we cannot know – but as Yuu says, if you stick around, something good is bound to happen.

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