Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 15

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Over in the real world, COVID is still ravaging the globe, protests are raging worldwide in response to my country’s racist, murderous police force, and government officials are calling on the military to cut down citizens with absolute impunity. If these aren’t the end of the days, they are the very least a brutal crucible through which all of us must pass with tremendous hardship, emerging into a future that bears little resemblance to the untenable past.

In light of all that fire and brimstone, I think we could all use a brief trip back to Alola. Staying involved and fighting for a better future is important, but we have to keep our spirits up as well, and recently, very little has given me as much joy as Pokemon Sun and Moon. Both Sun and Moon’s heroes and villains are utterly charming characters, the islands themselves are an inherently relaxing destination, and every episode demonstrates the strengths of this production’s animators in new ways. Last episode was entirely taken up by Lillie learning how to pet a Vulpix named Snowball, and I’d be perfectly happy with an equally fuwa fuwa premise this time as well. Let’s set aside the concerns of the day for just a moment, and enjoy some Pokemon Sun and Moon!

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Toradora! – Episode 6

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“Are you tired of being nice? Don’t you just want to go ape shitt?”
– Anonymous

It’s a little ironic that Ryuuji and Taiga initially bonded over their mutual inability to truly express their feelings. Though they have the same fears anyone might have about directly confessing to their crush, in a general sense, Ryuuji and Taiga are both unusually transparent, straightforward teenagers. Ryuuji would never lie or manipulate to get ahead, and Taiga wields her emotions like a rhinoceros driving a go kart, crashing through social niceties with the force of her feelings. And though they can’t really appreciate this, it’s actually that transparency and sincerity that their friends like about them. Kitamura respects Ryuuji for his straightforward decency, and Minori regularly lets Taiga’s rage be the vehicle for her own feelings. Our heroes envy their friends for their seemingly effortless cool and grace, but those friends in turn understand their own actions are in part performances, while Ryuuji and Taiga are always, unabashedly themselves.

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Summer 2020 – Week 3 in Review

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Last week I just barely managed to scrabble together enough airing shows to return to my traditional streaming-focused Week in Review model, but since then, my circumstances have taken a couple major turns that make that style significantly less tenable. For one thing, I’m dropping God of High School, because it’s not a good show and I don’t really enjoy watching it anymore. But more importantly, and far more positively, I’ve received some extremely generous reader donations directed towards Oregairu S3 writeups – meaning that from here out, I’ll hopefully be jamming out full weekly Oregairu articles, just as soon as I marathon the entirety of the first two seasons to refresh myself.

Considering the only thing you can really say about God of High School is “animation good, story bad,” hopefully all this counts as a net positive for you folks. And meanwhile, after a slight cooldown period to rekindle my engine after Preview Week, I’ve resumed munching through classic films in earnest, and have plenty more reflections to share with you all. Let’s dive into another Week in Review!

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Bodacious Space Pirates – Episode 5

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You folks ready for a space battle? Today we’re returning to Bodacious Space Pirates on the brink of the team’s first genuine combat engagement, with Marika having developed a daring plan in order to trick their adversaries. Taking advantage of the apparently elite skills of team hacker Lynn, Marika hopes to fool their attackers by letting them take over a dummy duplicate of their own ship’s systems, only to turn the tides when the enemy moves in for the kill. With both Chiaki and team leader Jenny Dolittle on her side, Marika is riding high at the moment – but the fact of the matter is, Marika’s skills have yet to be tested by anyone who doesn’t actually want her to succeed. So far this has all been a fun intellectual exercise, but clashing with real pirates can invite real consequences, and it remains to be seen how Marika will handle the pressure of mid-battle command, or accepting the potentially fatal consequences of her decisions. With her first live fire exam about to commence, let’s return to the starry seas of Bodacious Space Pirates!

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The Girl in Twilight – Episode 5

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Today we’ll be returning to the rootinest tootinest reality in all of the multiverse, as we continue The Girl in Twilight’s exploration of modern fantasy cowboy Japan. From the relatively straightforward social commentary of Twilight’s first arc, the show has now bounded forward into wild, fantastical farce, presenting a world that is as unique as it is hilariously anachronistic.

At the moment, Mia is doing her best to succeed as a new deputy, while her friends Chloe and Nana have found themselves hogtied and captured by Bounty Hunter Asuka, and our own Asuka and Yu are being convinced to rob a bank. In total, it seems like we might have members of the main crew from four different realities all represented here, between our original party, the Cowboy World locals, the missing Seriousuka, and the Yu who actually summoned the girls into this world. I’m not sure precisely how many Asukas any given world can handle, but I’m eager to find out as we continue this seriously entertaining production!

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Hugtto! Precure – Episode 15

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Hello everybody, and good to see you here at Wrong Every Time. Today I’m delighted to be continuing our journey through Hugtto! Precure, which is always a wonderful time, but which I’ve also currently got even more reasons to be excited for. For one thing, we’re still right in the middle of the “Lulu Infiltration Arc,” as Lulu pretends to be Hana’s long-lost cousin in order to get more info on the Pretty Cures. Of course, Lulu herself is far from impervious to Hana and the other’s charms, and it’s been wonderful to see her developing both affection for Hana specifically and more emotions in general, like her absurd baby-knowledge rivalry with Saaya.

Beyond that, I’ve also been told that this episode will serve as the triumphant return of Emiru, The Precure With Anxiety. I relate to Emiru heavily, as I am also deeply self-conscious and generally certain I’m about to die, so I’m eager to see how she fits back into the story, and particularly what she makes of Lulu. Let’s get back to the Pretty Cure!

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Summer 2020 – Week 2 in Review

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today, for the first time in over a full season, I’ll actually be offering some commentary on the latest episodes of several airing anime! I know, it’s been a while, and frankly, even this return slate is pretty limited – I’m currently just watching Oregairu, Deca-Dence, and God of High School, and fully expect my enthusiasm for God of High School to fall below the watchability line in the next couple episodes. Pure action spectacle married to bluntly atrocious storytelling just isn’t really my scene; fortunately, both Deca-Dence and Oregairu seem like unimpeachably solid contenders, meaning I might actually end this year with just enough shows for a top ten list. Let’s see what the season is offering so far, over the course of one more old-fashioned Week in Review!

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Symphogear AXZ – Episode 6

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Hello everyone, and I hope you’re fuckin’ ready for some SYMMMMPHOOOOGEAAAAR! Symphogear’s last episode kicked all kinds of ass, and this is me who’s writing this, so you know I’m speaking in terms of its dramatic structure and thematic ambition. After spending a third of the season lamenting her inability to contribute to the show’s active drama, Elfnein has finally found a purpose: by connecting her consciousness with Maria, she hopes to unlock the final secret of the LiNKER formula. Her mission should in turn allow Maria, Shirabe, and Kirika to fight at full strength, at last letting this season embrace the full ensemble potential of its excellent cast.

Meanwhile, Genjuro’s confrontations with the team’s benefactor, the head of the Kazanari clan, have established a rift that falls on clear political lines. Genjuro, as the head of an international strike force drawing its members from across the globe, and applying them to conflict zones worldwide, clearly sees the Symphogears as a force for good that should be shared by all of mankind. In contrast, Kazanari believes the Symphogears should be used to defend Japan specifically, even at the expense of international allies, drawing heavily on terms and iconography that bring to mind Japan’s invincible self-image prior to World War II.

Kazanari’s views are not anachronistic – he’s promoting a mainstream conservative perspective in Japan, which in our world is closely tied to historical revisionism regarding Japan’s past atrocities, and efforts to remilitarize the country. Anime rarely comments so directly on Japan’s immediate political situation (though there are exceptions, like the excellent Patlabor), and thus I’m very excited to see where Symphogear takes this narrative. The show’s already picked fights with gods and planets, so why not Shinzo Abe, too? But wherever this story goes, I’m eager to get back to the explosive action of Symphogear. LET’S GET TO IT!

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Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 14

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Over in the real world, 2020 is continuing to escalate in intensity in every way possible, and I currently exist in a perpetual state of heightened tension, vibrating uncontrollably from the moment I wake up to the moment I sleep. There are meaningful, urgent reasons for me to feel this way, but all of us also need some time to relax and recharge our batteries, if only to return to the work of the moment with renewed strength and energy. In my case, I think the best way to do that is Pokemon Sun and Moon – a show that always helps me feel warm and secure, and through which I can hopefully help some other folks calm down a little, too.

Last episode featured one of Sun and Moon’s comfiest conceits yet, as Ash and Pikachu competed in Alola’s Grand Pancake Race. Watching Pikachu do his best to carry a stack of pancakes healed my heart immensely, and whatever happens this episode, I’m eager to spend more time on this delightful island, sharing adventures with this charming cast. Without further ado, let’s return to the endlessly endearing Pokemon Sun and Moon!

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Kaguya-sama: Love is War – Episode 1

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Hello friends, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re exploring the first episode of a show that only came out recently, and which actually aired its second season just this past spring – the much-loved romantic comedy Kaguya-sama: Love is War. I actually watched the episode we’ll be viewing today for Anime News Network’s preview guide, where I gave it three out of five stars. So, uh, there’s that.

My thoughts at the time were pretty straightforward. I’m a massive fan of the show’s director, Shinichi Omata – as one of the most talented ex-SHAFT directors, he’s combined the stylistic quirks of the SHAFT house style with many inventions of his own, elevating shows like Sankarea into thrilling visual theater. More recently, the two seasons of Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu collectively stand as one of the very best anime of the last ten years – but Rakugo was a thoughtfully written period drama, whereas Kaguya-sama is fundamentally a pretty standard romantic comedy. I find most anime comedies to be some combination of too repetitive and too simplistic in their jokes, and in spite of Omata’s welcome visual embellishments, he still wasn’t able to elevate Kaguya-sama into something I’d want to watch weekly. Even by the end of that first episode, I was basically just clamoring for the leads to confess to each other – my days of being satisfied by “will they or won’t they” drama are at this point years behind me.

Given that review, I was frankly a little surprised Kaguya-sama ended up getting funded for notes writeups. But I’m perfectly willing to give something a second chance, and with Omata at the helm, I’ll likely be well fed visually even if the show’s jokes don’t thrill me. Additionally, there’s frankly a pretty wide spectrum of media that is interesting or noteworthy enough that I’d like to have a solid opinion on it, but not so personally appealing to me that I end up watching it in my free time – and given Omata’s presence, I’d say Kaguya-sama falls pretty squarely within that space. With both Omata’s and my own history established, let’s take a second crack at Kaguya-sama: Love is War!

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