Girlish Number – Episode 6

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Girlish Number got dark in the best way possible this week, by taking a break from Chitose’s narcissism to revel in the sadness of all the other characters. Koto, Kazuha, and Momoka all got solid material this time, with Koto in particular offering some personal reflections that echoed the general poison of the anime industry. That’s pretty much what I was hoping for from this show – not pointed economic satire, but reflections on how the problems in the industry have a specific human cost. Hopefully this is a good sign for the episodes to come!

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my barely-existent notes below.

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Fall 2016 – First Half in Review

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The season’s halfway point has arrived! Normally this is the part where I’d comment on how quickly time seems to be passing, and probably make some offhand gesture towards our inescapable mortality, but given we just concluded one of the most horrific and dispiriting political contests in my country’s history, it really doesn’t seem like time’s been passing all that fast lately. But if you wanted fatigued political commentary, you’d check my twitter feed – in spite of all else, the world keeps turning, and that means talking about cartoons!

This season has been offering us a terrific bounty so far, presenting close to half the shows that will likely star in my year-end list. The better shows get, the more small-minded and useless it seems to rank them in any kind of reductive list, but what’s the point of a tradition if it’s not celebrated far past the point of reason? So let’s once more do that thing I always do, starting at the top and running down my favorites of the season so far!

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Aikatsu – Episodes 1-3

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Hey everybody! Today I’ll be powering through the first few episodes of what’s become something of an odd favorite in my twitter circles, Aikatsu. Aikatsu is a long-running show based on an arcade card game, and is definitely far more Serious Idoldom than relative “crossover hits” like Idolmaster or Love Live. I’m not really expecting high-quality production or anything, but lots of people seem to find this show very charming, so hopefully I have a good time! I’ve also been stretching myself pretty thin for those megasized Nichijou notes writeups, so this one will be scaled back – I’ll point out interesting stuff when I find it, but I’m also gonna try to just enjoy the ride. Anyway, that’s enough preamble. Let’s get right into Aikatsu!

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March comes in like a lion – Episode 6

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This episode took place almost entirely in Rei’s head, making for one of the most powerful and difficult to watch episodes yet. There was some stirring imagery here, but also just plenty of well-articulated thoughts on adulthood and depression. March isn’t always a graceful show, but it is extremely good at depicting a few key emotional truths. Good luck Rei, it’s tough for all of us out there.

You can check out my full review over at ANN.

March comes in like a lion

Why It Works: Flip Flappers’ Unspoken Stories

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I was back to Flip Flappers again this week, discussing how so much of Flip Flappers’ larger storytelling beats are mostly relegated to imagery and background noise. While I enjoyed Flip Flappers from the start, I’ve only been feeling more impressed by its storytelling as the episodes pile up. If its second half is as strong as its first, it could easily stand as one of this year’s lasting anime highlights.

Why It Works: Flip Flappers’ Unspoken Stories

Flip Flappers

Nichijou – Episode 15

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And we’re back with more Nichijou! Last episode was a bit of a low ebb for the series – having to manage integrating Nano into the regular life of the other leads made for a somewhat uneven episode, light on jokes and awkwardly narrative-driven. Nichijou can certainly handle more sentimental material, but the demands of that episode’s structural transition were definitely felt in a variety of awkward ways. Fortunately, I assume the show will return to a stronger balance moving forward, now that Nano is already a member of the class. So let’s dispense with the doom and gloom and get right into more NICHIJOU!

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Don’t Get Jaded: Cynicism in Anime

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Today I’ve got a new ANN editorial for all you lovely folks! This time I’m diving deep into questions of tone and authorial voice, discussing the difference between cynical characters and cynical productions, and offering my own very predictable take on this whole mess of concepts. I had a lot of fun with this one – authorial voice is an inherently thorny and fascinating concept, and character writing is something I’ll never get tired of talking about. I hope you enjoy the piece!

Don’t Get Jaded: Cynicism in Anime

Girlish Number

Kokoro Connect – Episode 3

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Adolescent feelings continued to smash awkwardly together in the third episode of Kokoro Connect. This one opened right after the conclusion of the second, with Taichi challenging Inaba on her decision to declare his love for Iori while possessing his body. And so we got a long scene that was likely this episode’s best, but still demonstrated the extreme messiness of this production.

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Sound! Euphonium – Episode 6

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Sound! Euphonium had a goofy cooldown episode this week, which was reasonable enough for what it is. As I discuss at length in my review, Euphonium’s second season has consistently suffered for its adaptive nature, and so I’m not really expecting it to match the self-contained greatness of the first season. It’s messier, and the drama emerges far less naturally from the fundamentals of the narrative, and that’s just what we gotta deal with. Anime is a tricky business!

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my notes below!

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Girlish Number – Episode 5

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Girlish Number seems to be experiencing some growing pains at the moment, as it expands beyond “Chitose is a jerk” to try and add some substance to the world around her. The show’s sometimes farcical tone and very simplified version of the industry can work against its attempts to add weight to its critiques, but I appreciated this episode’s attempts to tonally underline this increasingly disastrous production. It’s a messy show, but still a very interesting one.

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my notes below.

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