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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Summer 2020 – Virtually Every First Episode Retrospective

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. With the summer season’s anime premieres behind us, it’s time to once again sort out the shining stars and cartoon crimes of the new season, and offer you all a mix of genuine recommendations and clearly exaggerated personal torment. As an understandable consequence of COVID’s continuous threat, a great number of anime were delayed from this summer season, meaning it’s actually the smallest anime season since I started cataloging them seven goddamn years ago. Personally though, as a grumpy old man with little interest in most shows, I tend to consider a season a success if it has even one show I’m extremely excited about – and with this season containing two such shows, hoo boy, I am ecstatic. Don’t worry about my deadpan phrasing, that’s just how I talk, I am actually super excited over here.

As usual, you can check out the full list of reviews over at ANN, or scroll below, where I’ll be breaking all of the season’s attractions down into handy categories from best to worst. If I end up panning one of your favorites, just remember that I’m making an implicit judgment of your personal character, and you should react accordingly (this is a joke, I’m joking, please do not do this). In the end, we’re all just watching anime to connect and feel something, and I hope I can make the task of finding a new show just a little easier for you all. Let’s get to it!

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Summer 2020 First Impressions – Part One

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Well folks, the summer season is officially underway at this point, though the vast number of COVID-prompted delays might not make that obvious. So far the only show that’s really impressed is God of High School, courtesy of its fabulous martial arts animation, but the season is still young, and all of the shows I’m actually looking forward to are still ahead of this. In the meantime, you can enjoy watching me suffer through the usual dregs of anime production, which this season includes a Mahouka knockoff and a tokusatsu team powered by horniness. Let’s get to it!

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Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 12

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Well folks, a day I have both been eagerly awaiting and quietly dreading has finally arrived. At long last, we find ourselves on the brink of Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!’s final episode, as the adventures of Asakusa, Kanamori, and Mizusaki conclude with the debut of their third major production.

It’s been a cozy and rewarding journey so far, full of insights into the complex world of anime production. Asakusa has taught us a great deal about creative inspiration and storytelling, Mizusaki has illustrated the finer points of animation itself, and Kanamori has consistently tempered her friends’ ambitions with reminders of the fiscal limitations and other compromises inherent in film production. They’re a good trio, complimenting each other both in terms of talents and temperaments, and through them Eizouken has illustrated and celebrated many of the granular elements that make animated art so compelling.

It’s certainly true that this episode doesn’t feel particularly climactic, though. As an adaptation of a continuing manga, Eizouken has made little effort to hide its episodic nature, and hasn’t really “ramped up” towards a climax in any way beyond the natural rising tension of their development schedule. But that seems somewhat appropriate for this show, which has so often reveled in the day-to-day friendship of these girls, and which clearly sees a long and illustrious future spiraling out before them. It’s been a delight to spend time with this cast, and appreciate the joy and imagination with which Yuasa’s team has brought them to life. Let’s settle in one more time for Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

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Spring 2020 – Week 13 in Review

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Hello everyone, and a hearty welcome back to Wrong Every Time! I’ve got an eclectic collection of film thoughts for you all today, starting off with a Ghibli classic that could not fit more squarely within my wheelhouse. Incidentally, writing that sentence prompted me to look up what a “wheelhouse” actually is, and the answer is adorable: it’s a little cabin you build to protect whoever’s manning the wheel of a ship, meaning it’s a literal tiny house for a wheel. Fantastic.

Anyway! All my friends have been clamoring at me to get to Whisper of the Heart for weeks now, and unsurprisingly, I ended up absolutely loving the film. Along with that, this week featured a strange spread of films in a variety of genres, from vintage Arnold Schwarzenegger to a recent film that tries much too hard to be quirky. It’s an interesting mix of films, and I’ve got plenty to say about them, so let’s dive into another Week in Review!

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Here’s Five Sights You Won’t See Anywhere But Symphogear!

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This week’s Why It Works is all about Symphogear, because it’s never a bad time to talk about Symphogear. Actually, the truth is that my recent reader-funded posts on Symphogear’s fourth season have simply reminded me how awesome and absurd this series is, and so I felt the urge to write some more general hype for this fantastic series. Let’s celebrate some of the more absurd highlights of the incomparable Symphogear!

Here’s Five Sights You Won’t See Anywhere But Symphogear!

Symphogear AXZ – Episode 5

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Buckle up folks, it’s time for SYMMMMPHOOOOGEAAAAR! When last we left off, the Bavarian Illuminati had just unveiled their much-hyped Faust Robes, leading to a total defeat for our main wielders. Shortly after that, Adam himself finally arrived, and ended up destroying the entire battlefield through alchemical fusion. Things are looking pretty grim for the team at the moment!

Of course, none of those narrative facts really mean all that much in a dramatic sense. “We gained our Faust Robes” might as well be “we achieved a new level of Super Saiyan” for all it means in terms of storytelling, and if you’re surprised by giant explosions, you must be new to Symphogear. Personally, the thing I found most interesting about AXZ’s fourth episode was its direct acknowledgment of Japan’s role in World War II, which, when coupled with the team overseer’s call to “drive these barbarians from the shores of Japan,” seemed to imply this season might be moving towards some genuine political commentary. Whether this episode furthers those ideas or just exults in glorious spectacle, I’m eager to continue this riotous journey. Let’s get to it!

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Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 13

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Well folks, the people have spoken, and they demand more Sun and Moon. As your humble entertainer, my hands are bound by the will of my readers – fortunately, there is almost nothing I’d rather do than return to the shores of Alola myself, and see what our trainers-in-training are up to this time. Sun and Moon’s last episode might have been my favorite episode so far, as Team Rocket got to take center stage like never before, and make delightful fools of themselves in the context of the actual team’s beach trip. Combining slice of life relaxation with lots of great comedy beats and terrific animation flourishes, episode twelve was a Sun and Moon highlight, and also one of Team Rocket’s most successful gambits across their long and less-than-illustrious career. I expect they’ll need some time to recuperate from their last battle, so let’s see what the rest of the cast are up to in another episode of Sun and Moon!

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Hidamari Sketch – Episode 1

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re embarking on a new journey, as I explore the first episode of a beloved franchise that I have basically zero experience with. We’re checking out Hidamari Sketch today, and as usual, I’ll begin by laying down what I actually know about this franchise. First off, I know that it’s one of the most enduring slice of life franchises out there, both in terms of its actual number of seasons, and in terms of its ongoing acclaim and cultural relevance.

I also know that it’s one of the core shows that defined the theoretical “SHAFT aesthetic,” a loose collection of stylistic choices that frequently includes flat, abstract backgrounds, single-tone colors, rapid closeups, creative and diegetic typography, mixed media compositions, dramatic character design shifts, and that beloved head tilt. Akiyuki Shinbo is credited as head director on basically all SHAFT productions, but given Hidamari’s other director Ryoki Kamitsubo would leave the production after the first season, leaving it entirely in Shinbo’s hands, it seems fair to assume that Hidamari Sketch is one of SHAFT’s most directly Shinbo productions.

Finally, I also know that Hidamari Sketch is about art students, and that their heads are very wide. With all that established, let’s explore one of SHAFT’s most iconic and beloved productions!

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Spring 2020 – Week 12 in Review

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Another precious week has slipped through our fingers, but fortunately, by collecting my thoughts on the movies I watched, I can still affirm those lost days truly existed. I plowed through a pretty diverse set of features this week – one ’70s classic, one acclaimed recent feature, an off-the-beaten-track horror film, and the latest film by one of my favorite directors, Mamoru Hosoda. I’m actually getting pretty close to the point where I’d be comfortable writing an overall “best anime films” list of some kind, which is something people have been asking about for years, but which I haven’t felt well-watched enough to attempt yet. In light of that, feel free to recommend any essential anime films I should check out, and please enjoy this latest Week in Review!

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