Attack on Titan – Episode 20

Posted on by

Alright, episode 20. Last one was bad, not gonna lie. The sum total of its progression was “Eren runs through forest, decides to actually follow orders for once,” it engaged in a bunch of redundant characterization, and the characters finally learned Titanification is triggered by injury PLUS a specific goal. That’s… not a lot of content, for twenty minutes of anime. I guess if I watched more shounens I’d be used to this, but I don’t, and I’m not. The pacing sucked.

However, when this show is good, it can create either solid dramatic moments or at least sweet action setpieces. So let’s get to some of that.

Continue reading →

Attack on Titan – Episode 19

Posted on by

Yep, fell behind again. What can I say, I’m pretty lukewarm on this show, and it comes out right in the middle of the Gatchaman->Monogatari->Uchouten Kazoku time frame where my anime-watching time is actually monopolized by serious business shows. Plus, like most shounens, the show just works better when you build up a few episodes anyway.

Anyway. Big female titan in the trees. What do?

Continue reading →

The World God Only Knows S3 – Episode 11

Posted on by

Very excited for this one. Glorious confrontation, glorious consequences. Chihiro actually learning what Keima is has to be one of the best possible directions they could take this – she’s always had one of the best honest rapports with Keima, and I think promoting her to series regular would make the usual dynamic much more entertaining.

Either way, Keima’s probably gonna get hit again. Win-win!

Continue reading →

Uchouten Kazoku – Episode 11

Posted on by

So. Three episodes left. Three brothers and mom in captivity, Kaisei captured as well, with the fourth brother still down the well, still unaware his father’s death was not his fault. There are a bunch of relevant pieces still on the board, of course – it’s unlikely Kaisei will be watched as carefully as the family, Yajiro is likely one “it was a trap!” short of busting out to rescue the family (and considering both his train trick and the fact that he’s remained a frog for god knows how long, he’s apparently extremely good at transformations), and both professors and Benten are still out there and still involved in the day’s proceedings. Granted, Benten’s turn will probably not be this easy – her position in the plot is too complicated for that.

Let’s talk about Benten for a second. Clearly we haven’t gotten her entire story – this show often mentions threads without fully explicating them, but it always comes back around to explain things when it hits an episode focused on the relevant character. And the key question with her is – why the Friday Fellows? What made her so intent on joining their group that she essentially killed a man? And what is the exact nature of her regret now?

Continue reading →

Gatchaman Crowds – Episode 10

Posted on by

So yeah, last episode the Gatchamen abandoned their creator in favor of starting up a sweet Youtube channel. Don’t bother asking me what they’re gonna do this week.

Continue reading →

C3-bu – Episode 11

Posted on by

Yura we still love you don’t go towards the light.

Man, growing up can really, really suck. Kinda funny to me that the season with Watamote secretly also contains an actually vivid, empathetic, and development-friendly articulation of crippling social anxiety. Hopefully C3 will get their heads out of their asses and sacrifice a little bit for her sake – they’re all very stable people, and Yura needs to know it’s okay to figure out who she is. Man, I feel for this poor kid. Didn’t think moesoft would ever amount to much, but it’s really built itself into something worthwhile. Let’s see where it goes.

please be nice to Yura C3-bu life is hard let’s just be nice to each other

Continue reading →

C3-bu – Episode 10

Posted on by

Well this show just got like fifty thousand times better. Still catching up, and episode 11 actually just came out, so I ain’t got time for chit-chat. All I know is that Yura is through with the petty joys and insufficient power of the C3 club. She is stronger now, wiser, hungrier. The fire is in her, and it will not be sated with tea and cakes. Now there shall be a reckoning.

Oh my god so good. Every moe show should end this way. This is amazing. Roll the episode!

Continue reading →

C3-bu – Episode 9

Posted on by

Alright, catching up on moesoft. Actually, that’s not fair – C3-bu is far more of a sports show than a blob show, and the work they’re doing with Yura is definitely pretty solid. But anyway, two episodes behind at this point, so no time for chitchat. Show us the dark side, Yura.

Continue reading →

Summer 2013 – Week 10 in Review

Posted on by

Another fantastic week in anime, but when the current season has a bewildering buffet on the scale of three good shows, that tends to happen. All three of my favorites were in top form this week, so let’s run down the list.

Continue reading →

Free! – Episode 10

Posted on by

Ooooh god. Food coma. Hurts. Too much kebab, too many greasy fries. And here I am, about to watch lithe young swimmers show off their somewhat terrifyingly toned bodies, while I sit here drinking a beer and just get fat.

No, fuck that. I have a great self-image! Just had my annual physical, exactly the same weight as last year, exercise regularly and don’t overeat and everything. In fact, I’d say that pretty much my only vice is my borderline alcoholism. I know. I’m impressed too.

So fuck you, swimbros. I don’t gotta prove nothin’ to you. I’m gonna sit here and drink (one for glasses-push or smarmy Makoto stare, two for HaruxWater moments, three for emo Rin) and feel perfectly good about myself. In fact, everybody feel good about yourselves! Only good times now! We are watching the fruit of an entire company’s worth of people working diligently for months, all in pursuit of animating some teenage boys prancing around half-naked for twenty minutes a week. Fuck feeling bad about my decisions. I don’t feel ashamed for shit.

Wait, I’m actually watching those teenage boys, just so I can make silly jokes about them for strangers on the internet.

Oh god.

Oh god what am I doing with my life.

Fuck it cue the episode.

Continue reading →