Category Archives: Review

Violet Evergarden – Review

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I finally took another stab at Violet Evergarden this week, and boy was I glad I did. With a better understanding of what the show was actually trying to do, even its first episodes felt much stronger this time, and the later highlights were absolutely breathtaking. Ultimately, Evergarden turned out to be a brilliantly realized mixture of intimate character development and larger reflections on self-expression and identity, peppered with individual vignettes capable of staggering beauty and emotional acuity. The Kyoto Animation golden age continues apace.

Violet Evergarden

Blame! – Review

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Aaand here’s my other late review, of another Polygon-Nihei combination. Blame! certainly wasn’t a great film, but it was still an enjoyable experience, and most importantly, it absolutely maintained the appeal of the comic. Certainly worth a watch.

Blame!

After the Rain – Review

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This one’s from last week, but I was rushing so much to do other writing then that I never reposted it here. Anyway! I reviewed After the Rain, the best show of last season (or so I thought until finally catching up on Evergarden). It was very good, for a variety of reasons. Here are those reasons for you:

After the Rain

New Game! – Review

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Today I dove into the first season of New Game!, which certainly offered plenty to talk about. New Game! succeeds well enough as a standard slice of life, but its choice of setting means it naturally comes off a little differently from its high school-situated compatriots, and often not in flattering ways. The softening of conflict and character that tends to come along with the genre meshed pretty awkwardly with the brutal realities of game design, leading to a unique overall production. Let’s get into it!

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

Love Live! Sunshine!! – Review

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Today on ANN I reviewed the first season of Love Live! Sunshine!!, an altogether compelling followup to the first Love Live that possesses an interesting mix of effectively purposeful and exhaustingly slobbering reverence for its predecessor. It was fun to return to Sunshine and fun to discuss its mix of strengths and weaknesses – shows like Love Live, where their greatest strengths are based in their most practical craft fundamentals, are some of the most rewarding to formally review. I hope you enjoy the piece!

Love Live! Sunshine!!

My Hero Academia, Volume 11 – Review

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It’s the end of an era in My Hero Academia. This volume was easily one of Academia’s best yet, and All Might’s climactic battle gave me tons to sink into in both a craft and thematic sense. The themey-wemey stuff took precedence this time, though – All Might’s fight essentially condensed Academia’s views on the conscience of society as a whole into one furious bout, and the volume’s second half then returned us to the engaging parent/child focus of the sports festival. Ridiculously compelling stuff all around, and I had an excellent time writing about it.

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

Myriad Colors Phantom World – Review

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Today I’ve got a review of one of Kyoto Animation’s least celebrated recent features, the fairly awkward Myriad Colors Phantom World. The crass fanservice of the show’s first two episodes led me to drop it back when it was airing, but the overall show is a fair bit better than those episodes would indicate. It’s still not good, but it’s a better-than-average entry in its genre with absurdly accomplished visual execution, which is still something!

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

Genocidal Organ – Review

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I finally got around to reviewing the third Project Itoh film, which was far and away the best of the bunch. Empire of Corpses was “campy, watchable trash,” Harmony was “utterly unwatchable pseudo-intellectual garbage,” and Genocidal Organ essentially balances the two, offering reasonably satisfying action and political commentary that doesn’t entirely disappear up its own asshole. I’m not sure I’d actively recommend the film, but if you’re looking for “anime take on a geopolitical thriller,” you could certainly do worse!

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

My Monster Secret, Volume 8 – Review

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My Monster Secret leaned heavily on its most minor side characters this volume, with altogether disappointing results. This manga definitely can succeed as a full-on farce, but when it’s not relying on the emotional appeal of its characters, the jokes really need to show up… and this volume’s collection of mediocre sight gags and too-long gimmicks just didn’t cut it. Ah well.

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

ReLIFE – Review

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Today I’ve got a full review of ReLIFE, a neat little character drama that kind of died in fan consciousness due to its all-at-once release schedule. The show is messy and looks like crap, but it’s got a unique pitch that leads to some uniquely compelling thoughts on growing up, as well as a generally good ear for character. It doesn’t really balance out to a good show, but I still enjoyed the ride!

You can check out my full review over at ANN.