Hello all, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! I’ve got a fresh pile of films I watched this week, including Masaaki Yuasa’s latest feature, along with another boatload of variably watchable horror films. Along with me personally being a big horror fan, horror is also one of the few genres I can always convince my housemates to take a chance on, so we end up screening a fair number of blood-curdling features around my apartment. The pickings were pretty solid this week, so let’s not waste any more time, and dive into the latest Week in Review!
Why It Works: What Are the Best Anime About Anime?
This week I’m once again diving into Eizouken-adjacent articles, as I use the show’s unique production focus to shamelessly promote some of my other favorite anime, like Shirobako and Paranoia Agent. As an artist and critic, stories about the creative process are obviously one of my weak points, and I’m happy to find another excuse to ramble about my favorites. Let’s get to it!
What Are the Best Anime About Anime?
Bodacious Space Pirates – Episode 2
Heya folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. I’m currently feeling sick as a dog, having spent most of last night coughing and sniveling in the throes of my first winter cold. Fortunately, today we’ve got a sunny, energetic new project to explore, which will hopefully help me put my own bodily dysfunctions out of mind: Bodacious Space Pirates.
Bodacious Space Pirates’ premiere powered through the first part of Marika Kato’s call to adventure efficiently and with a great deal of charm, as she rapidly discovered that space pirates exist, her mother actually was one, and her father’s death has left her as the improbable heir to a legal pirate ship. In narrative terms, Marika’s story seems to echo old adventure serials, along with a healthy dash of school drama tropes, like the mysterious transfer student. In aesthetic terms, the show is quite pretty on the whole, with solid CG and fairly expressive characters. I’ll be interested in seeing if that unique visual sequence while Marika was having her history explained is a persistent trick, but on the whole, I’m ready for whatever this charming show offers. Let’s get to it!
Chihayafuru S3 – Episode 18
We return to Chihayafuru in the midst of the challenger matches, with both Haruka and Harada having fought through difficult first rounds to arrive at luck-of-the-draw conclusions. Harada actually succeeded in beating Suo in that faceoff, but it remains an open question whether Suo is merely letting Harada win in order to prolong his final match as Master. While we’ve gotten a closer look into Suo’s psychology over the past several episodes, basically none of that context has made him more likable in any way – he’s proven himself to be not just selfish, but genuinely invigorated by toying with his opponents. And given how much of a physical toll just two rounds with Arata wrought on Harada, defeating an even stronger opponent who’s determined to drag this out across five rounds seems next to impossible.
Meanwhile, Haruka lost her own first round, but given the emotionally turbulent nature of Shinobu’s post-match experiences, it’s hard to say how future rounds will play out. Shinobu entered this match on an emotional high, energized by the knowledge that her grandmother actually supports her decisions – but after the first round, her mother stole that energy, by cruelly stating that her grandmother was just using her as an advertising prop. That blow was followed by a second, accidental jab courtesy of Chihaya, who unthinkingly admitted she’d prioritized her class trip over karuta, thereby proving in Shinobu’s mind that they don’t actually share the same passion. Will all this betrayal rattle Shinobu, or will it actually clarify her self-image, and return her to an unmatchable kinship with the cards themselves? I mean, I don’t know, but I’m guessing this episode will probably clarify that pretty soon. LET’S GET TO IT!
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 5
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!
Winter 2020 – Week 6 in Review
Another week has come and gone, and once again, I have a loose pile of assorted media experiences to share with you. While my anime season continues to largely consist of Eizouken and Chihayafuru, I also churned through several movies this week, and have been replaying one of my favorite games of the past several years. I’m hoping to get back to the theaters as the winter doldrums eventually lets up, but for now, we continue our charge through the Netflix collection, supplemented by a unique horror anthology. Let’s get to it!
Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 5
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!
Why It Works: Not Born to Be a Hero: My Hero Academia and the Road to Greatness
Today I’ve got a fresh My Hero Academia article for you all, largely inspired by the show’s recent provisional license retakes, as well as Mirio and Nighteye’s additions to the story. One of the things that I feel sets MHA apart as a shonen is that in terms of temperament, Midoriya is far removed from the default “shonen protagonist,” who’s generally someone a lot more like Mirio or Yoarashi. Midoriya has to actually work to come off as inspiring, and that plays naturally into My Hero Academia’s framing of heroism itself as a source of inspiration. Anyway, here’s the piece!
Not Born to Be a Hero: My Hero Academia and the Road to Greatness
Chihayafuru S3 – Episode 17
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!
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 4
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!