Let’s get back to Chihayafuru! The first episode of the show’s second season introduced a girl who’ll presumably be the team’s newest member, the altogether charming Hanano. Hanano is petty and scheming and exactly the kind of sharp-edged character this largely wholesome crew really needed. I’d actually expected us to get a crew member who fulfills this caustic tonal role a long time ago, but I’m still very happy to see her now, and looking forward to seeing how she settles into the overall group dynamic. We’ve also got plenty of traditional Chihayafuru drama to look forward to, and given the first episode was basically all “Hanano is a horny gremlin who doesn’t give a crap about karuta,” I’m eager to see how this episode actually hooks her into the sport, or at least the team. I mean, maybe she’ll actually remain at “karuta is boring, but Taichi is hotter than the seven hells,” but I have to assume she’ll get a bit more texture than that. Either way, she’s an endearingly cynical on-screen presence, and I’m eager to see what this episode brings. Let’s get right to it!
Princess Tutu – Episode 1
Today we embark on one of my most anticipated backlog titles, Princess Tutu. By reputation, I know Princess Tutu to be one of the most highly regarded anime of all time, and easily one of the best shows specifically intended for children. I also know that it is a story about stories, and that it’s one of the crown jewels of its director Junichi Sato’s catalog. Sato would be magical girl and children’s anime royalty even without Princess Tutu – after all, he directed both the first two seasons of Sailor Moon and a great deal of Ojamajo Doremi, two other towering standouts within the field. And even today Sato remains an influential figure, from his highly lauded slice of life productions like Aria to his ongoing work with the Pretty Cure franchise.
My Hero Academia, Volume 11 – Review
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.
Winter 2018 – Week 7 in Review
The anime was not so great this week, I am afraid to say. Darling in the Franxx tied off its recent rally with a mediocre beach episode, Laid Back Camp outsourced its aesthetically weakest episode yet, and March comes in like a lion was still a no-show altogether. Though this winter season opened with an unexpectedly appealing grip of shows, it’s at this point arrived at an average, or perhaps slightly below-average lineup. That’s still fine for me, of course – with After the Rain still kicking ass and readers guiding me into such luxuries as Toradora and Princess Tutu, I’ve still got plenty to enjoy every week. But as for airing shows, this is slowly becoming a season that encourages prolonged glances towards that ever-present backlog. But enough grumbling – let’s start with our comfy campers and run this week down!
Flip Flappers – Episode 10
Flip Flappers’ tenth episode opens with Papika in a mood we’ve basically never seen her in – insular and depressed, crouched alone in the dark, reflecting on this mysterious “Mimi” figure. It’s an appropriate starting point for an episode that essentially tears up Flip Flappers’ status quo, abandoning its largely episodic structure and setting pieces in place for the grand finale. This is far from Flip Flappers’ best episode, but unlike episode eight, that’s not really its fault. This is an unabashed transition episode, and though its turns aren’t all the most graceful, it’s all working in service of the great cataclysm to come.
ef – A Tale of Memories – Episode 10
Let’s get back to A Tale of Memories! We’ve been slowly winding our way through this production for a while now, and I’m certainly having a fine time with it. The show is divided between two very different narratives, but its obsession with the idea of truly existing and leaving an impact on the world carries through each of them. On the Hiro/Rei/Miyako side, Miyako is the most stark example of this theme, constantly panicking at the thought of being neglected until she simply fades away. On the Renji/Chihiro side, Chihiro has obvious reasons to be preoccupied with memory and the nature of being, assailed every day by questions and fears regarding her ability to truly engage with the world, as well as whether the active voice in her mind is even really “her.” That thread, along with the show’s wild visual experiments, have kept Ef engaging regardless of its romantic twists and turns, which have stuck to more traditional melodrama territory. My preference for the show’s thoughts on memory over its romantic drama likely informs my preference for the Chihiro story over the Hiro story, but I’m certainly enjoying both the show’s halves, and am very interested in seeing how all of this comes together. Let’s get right to it!
Toradora – Episode 1
Hey everybody! Today we’re beginning a journey through a show I’ve actually been meaning to rewatch for a long, long time. The last time I watched Toradora was almost a decade ago now – in fact, it was possibly the first show I ever watched along with its active broadcast, back in my junior year of college. At the time, my overarching impression of the show was that it was essentially the adolescent romantic drama that all the other ones were trying to be – insightful, emotionally rich, solidly produced, consistently rewarding. That year was a very difficult time in my life, a time when my social life had just dissolved into painful, identity-shaking backbiting, and I mainly just distracted myself through lonely hours in my dorm room. Most of that year sucked, but Toradora was a very welcome comfort.
Winter 2018 – First Half in Review
That sacred time has come yet again. Once again we’ve arrived at the halfway point of the season, and once again I’ll be foregoing my episodic-specific thoughts in lieu of general feelings on everything I’m watching so far, all sorted into a neat show ranking. As usual, I should impress upon everyone that these show rankings don’t aspire to anything approaching objectivity, and the fact that I’m only doing this ranking here, when many shows have only just finished clearing their throats, means it’s basically impossible to draw any conclusions from them. These rankings also used to feel a bit more meaningful when I actually watched seven or eight shows a season – these days I tend to max out at half a dozen, and generally drop anything I’m not thoroughly enjoying. All five of these shows have been tested and found worthy in their own various genres and specialties, and I’d happily recommend any of them to the right person. But there can be only one champion, so let’s start with my top pick and RUN THIS SEASON DOWN!
Why It Works: Fresh Highlights of the Crunchyroll Catalog
It’d been a while since my last recommendation grab bag, and Crunchyroll have picked up a pile of stellar shows these last couple months, so this week I dove into that pile and emerged with a selection of old favorites. I am very happy to have basically any excuse to rep Spice and Wolf, as the show is pretty much my gold standard for anime romance, and it was also fun to revisit Starmyu’s exemplary performance sequences. I’ve already watched all this friggin’ anime, I might as well try and lead other people to the good ones!
Fresh Highlights of the Crunchyroll Catalog
Scorching Ping Pong Girls – Episode 3
It’s time for another episode of Scorching Ping Pong Girls! The show’s second episode was a big step up from the premiere, offering a very satisfying match, some nice animation highlights, and plenty of sturdy setup for the payoff of Agari and Koyori’s initial rivalry. I was particularly impressed by the show’s illustration of Hokuto’s unique ping pong powers, which was not only just engaging in a visual sense, but also very clearly conveyed the tactical back-and-forth of the fight, and even ended up underlining Hokuto’s emotional shift throughout the match. The show’s character writing is still only so-so, and Koyori hasn’t quite come into her own as a person, but this arc is clearly centered on Agari’s anxieties, so that’s understandable. Koyori is the intimidating new villain in Agari’s life, and at long last, the time has come for the two of them to truly duel. Let’s see some sparks fly in Scorching Ping Pong Girls!