Summer 2013 – Week 7 in Review

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Management: I think a lot of people find this format more friendly/useful than the timestamp writeups, and I write these things either way, so I think I’ll be posting them here going forward. Also, feel free to let me know anything you’d like more of in the comments.

This week was so good. My top two shows for this season are swiftly becoming two of my all-time favorites, and both of them had fantastic turns this week that seemed to indicate a honing of focus for the second half. Those first:

Uchouten Kazoku 7: This episode got me right in the gut. It started off extremely strong, with one last beautiful Benten vignette before returning the focus to the brothers. But the key here was the ending. This whole episode, the perspective shifted subtly but in a crucial way – while Yasaburou was still prominent, the focus this week was on illuminating the various sides of his put-upon older brother, Yaichirou. Seeing the contrast in his behavior towards the professor (calm, deferential), his rivals (confident, authoritative), and his brothers (childish, honest) really drove home the fact that his family is the one thing he truly relies on and lowers his guard towards. Which made the final scene, when his brother confessed to his role in their father’s death, absolutely heartbreaking. Yaichirou starts off essentially begging his brother to be innocent, and falls apart with a cry and collapse when he is let down. Right now, the political issues are secondary – this is Yaichirou realizing the one thing he trusts cannot be relied on. In a narrative sense, this moment clearly points towards what conflicts will cloud the second half of this show. But in its own context, it is one more incredibly personal and relatable moment in a show absolutely brimming with them, and its tragedy does nothing to diminish its beauty.

God, I hope this show maintains this quality to the end. So far I think it’s a goddamn masterpiece.

Gatchaman Crowds 6: Not to be outdone (by much, seriously, that Kazoku episode killed me), Gatchaman Crowds pulled out all the stops this week. The cliffhanger meeting from last week was delayed only so the existence of Gatchamen could become public knowledge, and the repercussions of this were as predictable as they were awesome. While the Gatchamen went to ground, Rui was forced to act – the existence of actual superheroes would throw a serious wrench in his “everyone’s a hero, no-one’s a hero” master plan. And so he arranges a meeting with Hajime through a fun set piece demonstrating the power of GALAX, ending with a clash where Hajime takes all of five minutes to acknowledge, question, and dismantle Rui’s philosophy. Hajime ain’t nothing to fuck with. Sugane and Hajime’s relationship also progressed this episode, with Sugane finally getting it through his thick skull that Hajime is far smarter than any of them. This show is heating up.

Monogatari S2 6: It sure is tough being the first seed in a season with two of the best dark horses in recent history. This episode of Monogatari got a bit too indulgent and pointlessly Isin-ish in the first half, but the second half was a lot of fun. Shinobu’s lack of fucks regarding the dynamics of time travel, and Araragi’s extremely valid and well-thought-out concerns (which he only mentions after the fact, of course, because at the time a girl had said she needed his help), made for an extremely entertaining ride. These two have one of my favorite dynamics in the show, and sending them off on a buddy cop time travel story promises all kinds of great shenanigans.

Free! 7: Thank god. Last week’s slice of life tedium feels thoroughly behind us, because this week saw a new episode director (the one behind K-On and Tamako Market, surprisingly) inject a massive infusion of visual distinction and purpose into the proceedings. Great direction and cinematography throughout this week, and virtually everything that happened was purposeful. This show’s narrative is absolute pap, but good direction can make almost anything compelling, and this episode proved that. Nice work, Free.

TWGOK S3 7: One of the funniest episodes yet for TWGOK, with this episode attempting to pull a double-booked-date double-seduction hat trick (yes, I know a hat trick involves three things, shut up). Not much else to say – last week disappointed me because it played the romantic scenario too straight, and this week bashed two or three romantic scenarios together at the same time, with Keima continuously ratcheting up his ambition despite barely being able to stand. This is comedy I can get behind.

C3-bu 7: Eh, I’m just enjoying this show for what it is at this point. This episode was pleasant, and the characters were pleasant, and the pacing was pleasant. Yura slowly becoming a moesoft tyrant is pretty great, and her characterization is well-realized. It’s a show with middling ambitions that pretty much always hits the mark.

Hunter x Hunter 93: This show is so great. This week transitioned from a tyrannical genetic mutant establishing a human meat farm to… a teenage boy tailing his friend on a date to watch out for any funny business. And it worked. It always works. I don’t know how they do it, but this show is fun and fast-paced and well-directed and full of creative ideas or great twists on old ones every single time.

So yeah. Almost everything was excellent this week. No complaints from me.

Free! – Episode 7

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No manic energy tonight. Very sleepy. Our glistening men will have to use those ample shoulders of theirs to carry a little more weight than usual. Hopefully that won’t be a problem – I found last episode pretty dull in spite of all its touchy-feely character-building pretensions, and I’m really just here to watch Gou be a derp and see Haru and Rin shoot smoldering looks at each other. I’d always thought KyoAni’s slice of life shows were lame, but never before had I actually witnessed a combined beach/desert island/haunted house/slumber party/flashback episode – that is like four played-out tropes too many. Get back in gear, Free. Juggle your resources like this and you’ll never make it to regionals.

Episode 7

0:15 – Wow, this rise out of the water  used as much animation as an entire lesser episode  of Titan

0:23 – Nagisa if you screw this up for Haru  so help me god

2:12 – I kind of wonder if this is any more or less watchable for me than any of KyoAni’s other slice of life shows. I mean, the novelty of it being maleblobs as opposed to moeblobs has kinda worn off, so outside of the vaguely appropriated sports shell, I’m pretty much left with K-On with abs. I guess you fuckers tricked me.

2:52 – Nice shot 

3:16 – Holy shit,  I’m already liking this episode waaay more than the last couple. They’re actually building some real tension here, and all these shots are great. Are they actually trying to evoke Rin’s feeling of discomfort? Is this show trying?

Oh jeez you guys I’m sittin’ up in my chair

3:28 – Animating a fish must suck

3:48 – HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS. LOOK AT THAT OMINOUS SHOT COMPOSITION.  And the split fish shadows dancing on the ground… man, where did THIS show come from?

4:12 – Oh, of course, it’s a dream. That’s perfect – those overwhelming cicadas earlier, now slowly fading into this creeping piano line… all the smudged colors, and the way reality seems to sort of crumble at the edges… alright, Free. Take the stand

4:22 – Well now I’m glad I didn’t do some theme gimmick this week.  Lovely shots left and right

4:39 – This is so great.  A creepy, distinctive setpiece that conveys every single thing we need to know about Rin’s past and motivation with barely a word. KYOANI WHY U TROLL ME LIKE THIS

5:01 – Why are shark teeth a thing 

5:39 – Oh but it is 

6:07 – Gou prattles on about her meaningless shenanigans. Haru’s eyes reside elsewhere.  Soon!

6:33 – “I’ll have their individual swimming styles and data recorded by the time of the match.” Alright, again, that’s great and all, but… this is swimming. You swim your fastest, and the other guy swims his fastest, and the fastest guy wins. Not a whole lot of room for strategic interplay there

6:56 – Rin’s effect on Haru is so strong it activates his hair-tossling automatically 

7:46 – Why are you doing this to yourself?! You’re going down a road I can’t follow, senpai! 

8:19 – Don’t we all?  There’s not a man on this team without some devastating watersports-related baggage

8:59 – Yeah, it’s basically exactly the same as K-On . Last week someone mentioned how male bonding was much more prevalent and overt outside of America’s defensive, screwed-up society, and that makes sense to me. But these characters just don’t ring as teenage males to me – they ring as children, just the way moe SoL characters so often do. It’s a really weird disconnect, and the fact that they’re using it for male characters makes me think this has just become an established rule of the escapist SoL genre. Is it working? I’m kind of blind to moe – are scenes like this successfully making people want to hold these characters’ hands and pinch their cheeks and tell them there aren’t any monsters under the bed?

9:27 – Man this is a weird effect. I’m recognizing Rei’s character so strongly – it’s a weird mixture of glasses-pusher and the direct moe parallel, the authoritative and standoffish but secretly passionate straight-laced type. And Haru is the blank-faced savant, and Rin is the tsundere, and… dear god

9:41 – Is this the plot of the rest of the show?  So, more training, the club will prosper, more slice of life shenanigans, you’ll meet Rin but there will be a conflict and you won’t be able to beat him swimming solo so eventually you’ll meet near the end of the series in the relay and win for real. Did I get it?

9:51 – Not to get 2deep4u or anything, but that’s twice in five minutes that Haru has thought of Rin and then turned to watch an object fly away into the sky. Symbolism!

9:57 – “Matsuoka-senpai, you’re not taking the bus to regionals with everyone else?!” Again Free shows some less-than-graceful exposition

10:29 – This is a conflict I can actually get behind.  It only required one dedicated scene to establish, but it’s fundamental enough that anyone can somewhat understand this character now

11:15 – “I’m going to see my dad.” Also nice. I like that they don’t drag this out with some trashy reveal – that flashback already told us everything, so the show can just move on.

11:24 – Here’s another iteration of that “rookies are useful for narrative” thing – one of the main purposes of Rin’s roommate is simply to give him someone to exposit and react to . Characters monologuing exposition to themselves is pretty ugly

11:54 – They are going crazy with the water  this week

12:45 – Nice parallel with the roommate’s own feelings.  This episode overall isn’t quite living up to those first few minutes, but it’s still a far cry from what this show was last week

13:17 – I love these shots . One of my favorite things about anime. They’re called pillow shots, I believe – they add nothing to the direct narrative, but they convey mood and a sense of space, and work wonders for pacing. A very un-western convention that carries across film, anime, and comics. In this case, they’ve significantly shifted the tone of the show throughout this episode, and here in particular they pull back the focus from the specificity and passion of Rin’s speech to the contemplative wider atmosphere of the early morning in an extremely organic way

13:36 – An absolutely lovely pan.  The scenery looks more like a sketch with watercolors than harsh cells. The bird in flight adds a nice focal point to draw the eye upward and also echoes that reoccuring “object in flight” motif

What happened to this show you guys

14:07 – All of it together now 

14:19 – Pff, you call those bags under your eyes?  Tomoko is not impressed

15:28 – Makoto’s going for a PhD in thoughtful concerned looks 

15:39 – Can you feel the heat?  Cause you can jump in the pool if you want, the first race doesn’t start for an hour

15:55 – Omigod you guys regionals 

16:47 – At least the show also realizes  swimming is an absurd subject for a sports show

17:11 – Gou is best Free . I can’t say I’m thrilled that the moment KyoAni adopt a more angular and less moefied design style, they use it for The Swimming Anime

17:42 – He’ll be publishing his thesis any day now 

18:35 – Oh no he didn’t 

18:56 – Oshit they dropped the bass. Now you KNOW It’s On

19:19 – Makoto stop your body can’t take the strain 

19:28 – Nice shot 

21:32 – That’s right. ALL the water 

And Done

Oh man, intense ending, huh? I guess Haru’s gonna have to start giving a shit if he wants to get on Rin’s level.

Anyway, that episode wasn’t the funniest, but it handily made up for that by being far more visually inspired than I ever remember this show being. New episode director? Either way, I’m all for it, and I’m looking forward to the aftermath of Haru’s sweet, chlorinated tears. If you want to get serious, Free, I am right there with you

Fall 2013 Season Preview

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I am kind of absurdly hyped for this upcoming season. My favorite studios, my favorite writers… basically the only way to improve it would be if Gen Urobuchi personally gave me a new show and a puppy. This lineup is stupid. I guess I’ll run it down in order of personal hype intensity?

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The World God Only Knows S3 – Episode 7

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Alright, one goddess to go, let’s get to it.

Episode 7

0:24 – What Elsie’s been up to: Established 

4:56 – I like how Keima himself has no silly pride outside of his game-mastery. Since he’s not really dealing with emotional issues any more, he’s basically just making himself a different kind of moe  for each of the girls

9:15 – His dark powers grow stronger 

10:22 – Think faster, Lelouch 

12:24 – Wow, he’s really reaching.  Well, everyone in this world is a stereotype anyway, I’m sure it’ll work out

13:19 – I figured after the last two episodes that we were done with all the wacky double-date shenanigans, but they are seriously committing to this one. But that particular romcom scenario never tends to end well…

13:55 – I don’t even…  See, normally these scenes play out with the protagonist (man or woman, this cliche is gender-neutral) simply trying to keep the two dates from running into each other. Here, he’s perfectly happy trying to seduce everyone simultaneously.  Goddamn, Keima

15:14 – This scene is amazing 

18:44 – I think he’s earned a beating this time 

18:57 – Fortunately for Keima, characters in this game-world are entirely incapable of reading moods or subtext 

And Done

Welp, Keima’s fucked. He got too ambitious and deservedly had it blow up in his face. Ayumi being an adult about the situation is going to make his secret harem ending pretty difficult – apparently dating three members of the same band is just one too many.

Great episode. It was one of the funniest of the season, both because he and Ayumi have a great dynamic and because the wacky misunderstanding double-booked-date hat trick is inherently ridiculous. That approach also answered my biggest complaint about last week’s episode, which was that it played its simple romcom narrative extremely straight – this week started off with one cliche (the sick visit), rudely merged it into another (the double-booked-date), and then had Keima actually attempt to double-win the date, which is completely insane and also extremely Keima. Better luck next time, Lelouch.

Monogatari S2 – Episode 7

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Day late on this one – it’s been a very busy weekend. Anyway. New arc today. I’m assuming we’re back on Araragi (which I’m kinda meh towards) and the arc is apparently about Hachikuji (also pretty meh towards), but this season has blown past my expectations so far, so I’m just trying to come in at true neutral. Let’s roll.

Episode 7

0:44 – Clearly a face we can trust.  

1:07 – A three second pause… alright, I’m just gonna let Isin’s dialogue do its own thing until pieces come together in a way that might make sense. The first arc of this season kind of spoiled me, but I’m kind of used to thinking of this show’s dialogue and its visuals as two separate shows that happen to run at the same time. So my notes will probably be a bit more me-focused (just jotting down details until they pull together), since I’m not gonna pontificate on what I don’t think I actually understand. So:

Traffic light metaphor. The pause where all motion is stopped, everywhere.

1:32 – “If I designed the system, I’d make sure the lights were never all green. Everyone prefers safe over dangerous.”

1:41 – They’re really grinding in a very simple statement. We’ll need a couple more reflections to triangulate an actual point, though

1:51 – “When the world is filled with green lights signaling safety, it’s more dangerous than anywhere.”

Again, basically self-notes here. The show is highlighting and underlining this concept, so I’ll want these statements written out to reference against

2:29 – “Half the lights being green just means half the risk. If you want to be safe, don’t cross sidewalks.” That’s something more, since it’s actually nonsense, and a kind of dangerous nonsense too. Hm

3:34 – Araragi, haven’t you realized yet you live in a world where half-baked semi-profundities always come back to bite you in the ass? Often literally, too

Nice shot there, by the way

4:11 – This is gonna be fun

5:01 – Her design is so bizarre. Like a non-anime fans’ idea of an anime character. It definitely helps make her seem like some kind of creepy homunculus

5:21 – Even if I didn’t already know, it’d be pretty easy to tell this is gonna be a Hachikuji story. All this crap mirroring Hachikuji’s life story and first arc. Isin can get so self-indulgent sometimes…

5:57 – That’s awesome. I’m glad she finds that phase as embarrassing as I found it annoying

6:11 – That is an incredibly good question

7:08 – I like how the absurd, empty-stage nature of their world makes this a pretty great gag

8:12 – Hm. Why is Araragi so put off by her assumption that he’s a human?

9:16 – Must every plot element mirror another one, Isin? Katanagatari is actually one of my all-time favorite shows, but in Monogatari I think he mixes it up too much between cute parallels and meaningful ones

9:28 – This one seems more relevant. Professing resurrection in a story about another dead girl

10:21 – I’d like to see a map of this town of theirs

10:36 – Seriously, I’d hire this urban planner in a second

11:06 – Seems relevant

12:42 – Oh please. Bring back Hanekawa!

14:07 – You know how I sometimes complain about Isin using his characters as self-indulgent mouthpieces? Well, I do, and Fuck This

14:47 – It only makes sense. Another distinctive shot

15:27 – Well this episode escalated quickly

18:01 – Manipulating Araragi 101: Play to his hero complex

18:26 – She takes his watch, and then once he no longer has control of it, uses it to confirm his sense of time. Hm

19:53 – I foresee no problems with this

20:25 – This conversation is actually awesome. Time travel is always nonsense, so “going forward in time takes less energy, just like salmon!” is pretty much par for the course

21:04 – And now he’s actually trying to clarify whether he traveled through time physically or just adopted his old physical self. You’d think if he were this thoughtful about time travel, he’d have asked maybe one or two of these questions before leaping through the giant scary time-gate

21:34 – Yeaah, she is being super weird about this watch

22:04 – This is extremely adorable

And Done

Welp, ya fucked around with time travel, what did you expect?

So I guess that answers the question of Hachikuji’s relevance. Are we actually right around her Time Of Death now? Eh, plot is details, let’s talk about the craft.

This episode definitely leaned into some of my least favorite Isin-isms, mainly through the extremely cute plot mirroring and self-indulgent, character-irrelevant banter. The first half just felt clunky as hell, and Shinbou didn’t really get much of a chance to strut his stuff as far as visual-plot-illuminating goes. That’s pretty much par for the course with Hachikuji stories, even though Hachikuji has yet to actually appear – there is no sexual charge to her and Araragi’s relationship, so the camera doesn’t have all that much to talk about. The second half was a lot of fun though, mainly because Shinobu and Araragi have a very endearing buddy-cop dynamic, and because time travel is just loads of fun in general, and actually improved through the presence of genre-savvy characters. Definitely not as strong a start as the first arc, but obviously it’s going places.

Uchouten Kazoku – Episode 7

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Whew. I’ve been busy cavorting with old friends all weekend, and I’m really not much of a social dude, so it is extremely satisfying to have something as calming and excellent as Uchouten Kazoku to come back to. Last week’s episode focused on that most alarming of incongruencies, the fairly blase attitude everyone takes towards tanuki-eating. As I’ve said elsewhere, while this show normally does a tremendous job of grounding its fantastical leanings in such universal conflicts and emotions that they appear almost mundane (or beautiful, but beautiful in a way that reflects all moments of sudden and unexpected beauty, not just unbelievable ones), the disconnect between these characters’ acceptance of the tanuki-eating and its inherently horrifying nature is a little hard to square. Or at least it is for the show’s two central characters – Yasaburou and Benten.

Not that this is a bad thing. In fact, the complexities of each of their feelings, and the way Yasaburou often treads around emotions and responsibilities he knows he will have to address, is one of the show’s great strengths. And considering how strong this show’s character writing is, I’m not really worried about that emotional disconnect; last week someone hypothesized that the disconnect is probably a strong indicator of where the show still intends to explore, and I’m inclined to agree.

Anyway. Enough nonsense.

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Summer 2013 Halfway Point: Season So Far

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Management: Sequel to this post. My general thoughts so far on the winners, losers, and casualties of my summer season.

This has been a very good season, and though there hasn’t been anything I enjoy as much as I enjoyed OreGairu in the spring, I think the top show is technically better this time. But the top tier is really good all around. In descending order:

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Gatchaman Crowds – Episode 6

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Rui and Hajime, finally meeting! High-Minded Ideals x Informed, Selfless Proletariat OTP. Let’s get to it!

Episode 6

2:12 – Awww, Rui walks away? What a goddamn tease that cliffhanger was

2:27 – Okay, that almost makes up for it.  Gatchaman unveiled! For a second there I was worried they wouldn’t shove the plot ten steps forward today

3:52 – Ahh, I see.  Even without actually confronting him, this kinda forces Rui’s hand – there’s no way Gatchamen won’t be considered an alternative to GALAX

5:10 – I can never get enough of their sweet pad 

5:37 – Pai’s voice is amazing. Aya Hirano is so good

6:32 – Pai can’t decide anything without a higher authority deciding it for him . No wonder Hajime doesn’t respect their rules

7:53 – These two are not the best at conversation 

8:43 – “I’m j-just following you so you won’t do anything crazy!” “Oh, that so?”  C’mon Hajime, don’t tease the poor boy

9:09 – Hajime’s lack of faith in the primacy of social networking 

9:31 – “A whim? I’m not that irresponsible.” And then that long look from him. Nice to see that misconception finally get some resolution

10:58 – Again he abuses his powers for what he perceives to be best for everyone . Constantly contradicting himself and hopelessly naive, but legitimately passionate and high-minded. I really like this character

16:09 – I’m sure Rui was quite proud of his demonstration . Everyone contributes a little bit and great things are accomplished

16:28 – Hajime always makes a point of being referred to by her name, but Rui introduces himself by his title and source of power 

18:14 – And he can’t help but seek praise for his own contributions 

20:17 – “Were all those heroes yesterday your friends?” “What are you talking about?” Don’t bullshit me . So good. I kind of don’t care if Hajime is too perfect, it’s still fun seeing her kick ass

And Done

Oh man, that was definitely as satisfying as I’d hoped. Hajime not unexpectedly sees both the strengths and failings of Rui’s plan pretty much immediately, and Gatchamen have gone public. And we get a bunch more development of the Sugane-Hajime dynamic, with Sugane finally getting it through his thick skull that Hajime’s easily smarter than the rest of them. I’d say “things will start moving faster now,” but things pretty much always move at top speed in this show. Bring on the next one!

C3-bu – Episode 7

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Alright, C3-bu. You’ve done it. You tricked me with your Gainax pedigree, you tricked me with your well-crafted first episode, and you tricked me with your totally insane fourth one. You’ve strung me along with idle promises for half a season, and you’ve successfully tricked me into just liking you for your own merits.

Goddamnit.

Episode 7

0:36 – Holy shit. Is Yura’s need for acceptance gonna drive her to start juicing with illegally powered-up airsoft guns? 

1:55 – This show certainly plays pretty fast and loose with its tone . Moe bonding to sniper fire in five seconds flat

3:51 – Illegally modified guns? Eren Yura don’t give a shit .

4:27 – Looking for more cake? Well too bad, the school festival is over 

4:50 – Well they’re certainly playing up Rin as the would-be assassin. Which of course means she was just there to protect them from the assassin or something. Unless they’re actually playing this straight, in which case holy shit, the rival just tried to kill those girls

5:11 – I’m glad they actually address her case of almost got hit by a car syndrome , plenty of shows pretty much accept “almost got hit by a car” as cause for a serious injury all on its own

6:36 – Okay, now they’ve already guessed it’s Rin, that pretty much guarantees it’s not her

8:18 – Ah, the classic “pour out your worries to your not-actually-sleeping role model”  maneuver. A genre staple

9:56 – If they keep talking about this studying thing I’m gonna stop believing this is actually a Japanese school 

Alternate joke: “Yeah, studying ass! So… so we can kick it. At the tournament.”

11:13 – And her coup is a success.  In their leader’s name their leader is abandoned. This is some Orwellian shit right here

12:26 – The transformation is complete.  Fun is dead

14:04 – Yesss, Yura.  Forget their petty complaints. It’s all for the greater good!

18:40 – This would all be more impressive  if anime hadn’t already taught me there’s nothing more powerful than a team of little girls

And Done

Wow, Rin’s a dick. Anyway, pretty slow episode today, since aside from that early sniper fire it was basically all slowly showing Yura’s descent to the dark side. Which I guess is necessary for the story, but kinda standard stuff without much flourish, so not the most exciting thing to watch. Next week should be fun, though.

Summer 2013 Halfway Point: Week in Review

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Management: Speculatively calling this the first half of a two-parter on the summer season. This half will focus on the specific episodes that have marked the halfway point in my schedule (I’ll probably add in Monogatari after it airs), and the upcoming one will cover my thoughts on the overall series so far.

So! Halfway through the summer season, and there really haven’t been any crazy upsets so far. My top tier is still Uchouten Kazoku, Gatchaman Crowds, and Monogatari, but I’m enjoying the also-rans as well. Let’s check in on what the crap everybody was doing this week.

Free! 6

This episode felt kinda tedious to me. I think this show has pretty much only three things that make it watchable to me:

  • The concept is funny and results in some cute subversions of genre tropes
  • It’s very pretty and the direction is occasionally inspired
  • The better episodes are actually very funny in their own right

Unfortunately, this week focused on the character relationships, and KyoAni’s slice of life characters are always too thin to afford compelling character drama. I mean, I love character-focused stuff, it’s my favorite thing, but for character-focused stuff to be compelling you need characters with a little more depth than “the genki one,” “the glasses-pusher,” etc. Bleh.

Uchouten Kazoku 6

I didn’t like this episode as much as the last two, but its first and last acts were still tremendous and heartfelt and beautiful. However, the centerpiece of this episode was a long conversation that I’m frankly still trying to figure out. Tanukis being eaten by humans (and that just being accepted as something that happens sometimes) has always been the point of greatest disconnect between this show’s fantastical flourishes and sharply grounded character conflicts, and this episode basically dove directly into that disconnect, presenting a long monologue by the mild-mannered but strongly pro-tanuki-eating professor, complete with a flashback where Yasaburou’s father displays absolute complacency towards being eaten, and only professes a hope that he doesn’t ruin an otherwise agreeable hot-pot. And Yasaburou is pretty much charmed by him!

I just don’t know how to square this – perhaps on a thematic level eventually all these contrasting viewpoints will fit into neat holes regarding the value of a life well-lived (we’re actually pretty close to that point, I think), but on a more practical character-empathy level, I just can’t relate to the way these characters treat the tanuki-eating. Which is frustrating, since this show is normally incredibly good at grounding its fantasy in universal human emotion. So while I can’t say this was a “bad” episode, it was certainly a tough one for me to wrap my head around.

C3-bu 6

C3-bu is also turning out to be more slice of life than I could have hoped for, but fortunately this show is more fun in concept, more creative in execution, more regularly funny, more dramatically sound, and populated with much better characters than Free. I’m actually just enjoying this show on its own merits at this point – Yura’s personal issues are being handled with more grace and thoughtfulness than I expected, and it really knows how to handle either a fantasy-world or standard gag setpiece. You’ve won me over, moesoft.

The World God Only Knows S3 6

TWGOK slowed down the pace this week, which I guess is fitting for the Shiori episode. Shiori’s inner monologue was both funny and relatable, and her own fantasy-world imaginings are always great, but this story itself felt far more lazy and convenient than this season has been so far. I feel this show’s strengths are its humor and its habit of pointing out and subverting cliche story structures, but this one just played entirely by the book – Keima’s plan was very simple and it worked perfectly. It was perfectly watchable, but I was still kinda disappointed.

Attack on Titan 18

This episode was definitely a step down from the previous two (which I very much enjoyed), and felt a bit like one of Trost’s renowned “oh shit this story doesn’t correlate to our number of episodes let’s check in with everybody maybe take five for a flashback and move the plot forward seven inches” episodes. The first half was more excitement with the female titan, who’s apparently beginning to favor some style in her kills, but the second half consisted of people getting up into some trees and wondering why they were in them. I’m not worried, since the female titan represents a much more immediate threat than Eren not remembering he was human or the giant boulder ever did, and this show is still leagues better in its second half, but that second half was still not particularly engaging stuff.

Hunter x Hunter 92

This arc has gone totally nuts, and this episode was a nuts cherry on a nuts cake. Desperate giant-ant surgery was witnessed, vows of parenthood and brotherhood were made, and now a minor army of powerful monsters with hallucinogen-prompted designs have begun spreading out to conquer the world. This show is basically my definition of entertainment.

Gatchaman Crowds 5

This show never lacks for ambition, does it? This episode focused on the not-so-secretly most important character, Rui, and had him basically set out his thesis statement on his ideal, communal, utterly crowdsourced society. Showing its usual respect for easy answers, this speech was immediately shut down by one of his subordinates rightly calling him a naive, idealistic fool, and promptly hanging up on Rui to go play with his adorable daughter.

Rui’s plan has always had a number of internal inconsistencies, with his belief in a human nature that’s far less reliable than he thinks certainly being one, but another being the fact that for all his rhetoric regarding the death of heroes and the equality of his system, he is king of his powers. He decides when they’re used, he pulls the trigger, he is judge jury and executioner. This episode was the breaking point on that internal tension, when the collapsing tunnel finally prompted him to make himself the hero-celebrity he’s never wanted to be. Now he’s finally going to come into direct contact with Hajime, who is perhaps the only human being who truly represents the spirit of community his hundred were supposed to embody. This show just keeps getting better and better.

And the rest

Monogatari was a recap this week, and I’ve officially dropped Watamote – the show seems to really not have any aspirations outside of humorously and deservedly dumping on Tomoko, and that’s just not too compelling to me. I’m very excited for next week, though – a new arc in Monogatari, a new day in Uchouten Kazoku, and the long-awaited confrontation of Gatchaman’s two leads promises plenty of action, excitement, and thoughtful understated character drama. My favorite things!