Category Archives: Review

A Bride’s Story, Volume 7 – Review

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I returned to Bride’s Story after some time away this week, reviewing a volume that felt more or less like an intended breather after last volume’s high-stakes drama. Anis’s story was pleasant enough, but mainly just a very warm and fuzzy romance, largely conveyed through evocative floral garnishes and whatnot. It’d have been a stronger story if Anis and her avowed sister actually had some chemistry, but both of them were just too mild people for that. The manga’s art was still beautiful, but this was definitely a less compelling narrative than usual.

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my chapter notes below!

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Doamygar-D – Review

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So today I’ve got a review of a short I’m pretty sure nobody actually watched, and for good reason – it’s basically just a loyal spoof of classic super robot shows, offering nothing of interest to anyone who isn’t a fan of super robots, Kyoto cooking, and extremely harmless comedy. It wasn’t a painful watch or anything, but also not a watch I’d really recommend for any reason. Although I did like the goofy accent of the American character!

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my episode notes below.

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The Rolling Girls – Review

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Welp, I went back to check out the Rolling Girls one more time, and it… went pretty much the same as the first time. The Rolling Girls is full of so much stuff I absolutely love, from its art design to its character focus to its worldbuilding, that it’s kinda painful to reflect on how the final product couldn’t pull itself together. The show had everything going for it, but its team just couldn’t write their way out of a paper bag. It’s a terrible shame.

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

The Rolling Girls

Garo the Animation, Part Two – Review

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Garo’s second half finally came out, and so I got to finish this recent swashbuckling adventure ride. The second half was unfortunately not quite as impressive as the first – the show kinda felt like it had just run out of fundamental story after the collision of Leon and Alfonso, and introducing devices like a born-to-be-fridged girlfriend certainly didn’t help matters. But Garo is still just a fundamentally compelling production, and so I still had a fine time with its conclusion.

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my episode notes below!

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My Hero Academia, Volume 5 – Review

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My Hero Academia’s fifth volume is a friggin’ masterpiece. That’s basically all there is to it – the manga has continued to improve from a starting point of “extremely solid archetypal shounen,” and at this point its strong art, wonderful characters, and bubbling themes are all working in concert to create legitimate magic. This was a tournament arc where I actually cared about every single competitor, where I cheered and cried at every single fight. It perfectly fused climactic action and very personal storytelling, demonstrating exactly how you make fights worth fighting. I can’t even imagine what comes next.

You can check out my full review over at ANN!

My Hero Academia

Charlotte, Part One – Review

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So yeah, it seems I’ve found myself reviewing Jun Maeda’s latest production. And so far, Charlotte has proven to be… well, Jun Maeda’s latest production. The same broad character roles, the same hysterical dramatic peaks, the same fundamental lack of narrative foundation. Charlotte is far from the worst show, but it certainly isn’t a good one, and Maeda really does seem to be one of the least talented superstar writers out there. That said, Charlotte actually seemed to be getting more entertaining as it fell off the rails, so here’s hoping the second half is a beautiful disaster.

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my episode notes below!

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My Monster Secret, Volume 2 – Review

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My Monster Secret is some very solid comfort food. You’re not gonna be impressed by its character writing, you’re not gonna be shocked by its dramatic craft, you’re just gonna laugh and watch some stupid kids make funny mistakes. I’m frankly happy to see it being released now – I generally need a certain density of active manga releases to keep me satisfied, and with both A Silent Voice and Biscuit Hammer having ended, I was running low. My Monster Secret obviously can’t replace either of those shows, but I’m enjoying my time with it just the same.

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my kinda useless chapter notes below!

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Lucky Star – Review

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My journey into Kyoto Animation’s history hit a rough patch this week, as my high hopes ran aground on the rocky shores of Lucky Star. Lucky Star is a long, tedious synthesis of everything I find unimpressive about anime comedy, so all I can say in the end is I’m glad I survived it, and at least now I can reference it confidently when discussing the studio. It was frankly somewhat strange to see such an unfunny comedy from a studio I generally point to as the one group who actually understand comedic timing; there were occasional successful gags, but the vast majority of Lucky Star is just a long, long, long expanse of absolutely nothing. But I survived. That is enough.

You can check out my megasized review over at ANN, or my increasingly desperate notes below!

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Shonen Hollywood, Season 2 – Review

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Shonen Hollywood is back and, well, pretty much the same as ever. Same subdued character work, same cynical edge, same pretty-much-crap visual execution. If you’re one of the five or six other people who watched the first season, you know what to expect here. Shonen Hollywood is always a fun watch, and based on the end of this season, it looks like there may be even more coming down the pipe. Who knows what minor disappointments might next await our eternally disenchanted heroes!

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my episode notes below.

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Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning

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Everyone has heard that “doing the same thing and expecting a different result is the definition of madness” cliche, but as a critic, I don’t always have the luxury of learning from experience. When I don’t think I’ll like something, I generally just stay away – I’m not a big fan of hatewatching, and feel that if you go into something expecting to dislike it, you’re not likely to learn anything from the experience. But when it comes to the Current Projects, sometimes my life is a sequence of touching a hot stove, burning my hand, hearing someone say “I’ll pay you fifty bucks to touch it again,” and then doing exactly that.

I’ve had difficulty getting into visual novels in the past. I started with Katawa Shoujo, which in retrospect probably gave me some unfortunate preconceptions about the medium at large. I know VN aficionados likely see Katawa Shoujo as an “entry level” piece, but it’s not a bad thing to possess qualities that makes your art accessible to a wider audience. And in Katawa Shoujo’s case, those qualities seem to be things like pacing, a believable interior voice, dialogue that sounds like human beings, and stories that respect the reader’s time and investment.

My experiences since then have been somewhat less positive.

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