Stella Jogakuin Koutou-ka C³-bu – Episode 1

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Welp, Danganronpa subs still aren’t out, so I guess I’m watching Gainax bet whatever portion of their reputation remains on cute girls doing airsoft things. If this ends up being Girls und Panzer-esque (in that it isn’t just random moe nonsense, it’s actually a well-paced and self-aware sports drama or something), I will be ecstatic. But I hope you’ll forgive me for keeping my initial expectations somewhat low.

C’mon Gainax, you can do this. You mustn’t run away.

Episode 1

1:20 – Well, we’ve gotten up the steps. Progress

2:30 – Damn she’s awkward. I feel that cringe.

5:14 – Well, this OP is Panzer as fuck, and clearly emphasizes the action element over the derping teatime element. The show has added another three minutes to its drop clock, and will almost certainly outlive Servant x Service (that one survived about 11 minutes)

6:42 – And the current club members all seem to have both strong personalities and a powerful streak of insanity. Add three more minutes to the clock!

7:58 – And now they’re daydreaming about assaulting the student body with mock firearms. I think we’re getting somewhere!

9:12 – Rambo reenactments: moe as fuck

9:46 – Noooo, don’t bring out the cake! We were doing so well

10:07 – “They just drink tea and do nothing actually club-related.” What subtle jabs, Gainax

11:26 – “It goes Bam and everyone goes Woooo!” It’s kinda weird seeing the classic Gainax loose, evocative character animation style after all these years, in a show like this. Nostalgic, I guess

12:17 – “She’s already found a friend.” I like the way they use the muffled voices to drive home the barrier between her and other people. A good trick of perspective

13:05 – These semi-fantasized flashbacks also make use of some good tricks of visual style. This show’s not there yet, but it’s definitely exceeding my expectations

14:48 – “Please try out our mock battles!” Is it just me, or does that VA just have a constant note of near-insanity in her voice?

Also, her isolation stuff continues to be handled well. Not only does the sound design work hard to show-not-tell you her experience, the disconnect between her actually pretty lively private personality (the rambo stuff, her self-directed outburst about enjoying high school) and the fear she feels in public makes her a much more interesting and alive-feeling character than an eternally timid one would be

16:02 – Oh man, and they’re actually gonna set up real battles with rules and distinctions and everything? I was basically kidding about this show aspiring to GuP levels of unexpected excellence, but now I’m not so sure!

21:46 – Couldn’t pause it during that setpiece. Fantastic music, the direction cut well from each character’s perspective to the next movement to maintain a coherent flow and understanding of the fight, the internal pacing was great and amped up confidently throughout. You had my curiosity, C3. Now you have my attention

And Done

Whew! That last act certainly made an impact. The direction and character work was well above the standard for this genre throughout, which admittedly isn’t a very high standard, but that setpiece was legitimately impressive. I enjoyed this episode, and I’m definitely on board to see where this goes.

Free! – Episode 1

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Alright! Back from work, food recklessly consumed, beer at the ready, gin waiting in the wings. LET’S GO SWIMMING.

…is all I want to say, but I should probably note at least a tiny bit of my perspective here.

I don’t really care about the manservice thing. I find the insecure and embarrassing complaints hilarious, and I’m all for equality in show demographics.

That said, the advertisements for this show have pretty obviously focused on showing a lot of half-naked men, and fanservice doesn’t really do anything for me regardless of what gender it’s aimed at. In my mind, it basically just objectifies characters and makes it harder to take them seriously – but it seems like this show is gonna have some fun with that, so we’ll see how it goes.

As far as KyoAni in general is concerned? Hyouka, Chuunibyou, and Disappearance are three of my all-time favorite anime. But… well…

I dropped K-On. I dropped Lucky Star. I dropped Tamako Market. I need my shows to do something, to saysomething, to mean something – and while I think that isn’t incompatible with the Slice of Life genre (Yotsuba and Genshiken are two of my favorite manga, after all), I do think KyoAni’s interpretation of slice of life generally equates to “utter escapism, no reflection on our world, no sharp edges or truths.”

So there are plenty of landmines lining the distance between current me and a me who actually cares about this show. And I honestly hope that our sculpted, majestic heroes glide effortlessly between them. And I’m just warning everyone right now that if things turn K-On-ish, the only way I’ll be getting through this is with a heaping plate of mocking derision.

But either way, it should be a ridiculous ride. And hey, I’ve got a beer!

LET’S GO SWIMMING.

Episode 1

0:00 – Seriously, even if this sucks, I have had a huge smile on my face all day just because it exists and /a/ has to deal with it. You go KyoAni

0:03 – Ah, the single water droplet on the still pool. A deft choice; taking an iconic image indicative of classic psychological dramas, and subversively applying it to our story of brotherhood and chiseled abs.

Full disclosure: I have already switched to gin.

0:27 – Goddamn are KyoAni shows beautiful

0:49 – Omigod as soon as that synthy music jumped in. I can’t help it. Jesus christ KyoAni you give so few fucks

1:22 – “Stop calling me Haru-chan already.” So he’s gonna be the Mio, huh?

1:54 – “I only do freestyle.” That’s right, mysterious stranger. Haru-chan rides alone

Is it sexist of me to find these classic, rote genre tricks so amusing when applied to men whose physicality is being so emphasized? Is this what this entire genre is like? Maybe it’s actually sexist in the other direction, since I just find it tasteless and offensive when a genre shell exists to sell female bodies, but here I just find it… oh shit, that’s stepping into MRA territory ABORT ABORT. Uuugh, now I gotta go wash that sickly fedora taste out of my mouth

2:18 – “I JUST WANT TO FEEL THE WATER.” “Yeah, there was some funky stuff going through my head back then.” Dear lord, is this show going to be intentionally funny, too? I might actually love this

2:34 – “When you’re ten, you’re a prodigy. At fifteen, a genius. At twenty, just an ordinary person.” That’s both a great line and probably a better summation of the false prophet of talent than… ohoho, you almost got me, Sakurasou! Making me repeat my material, you cheeky bastard! Alright, let’s instead say that’s a nice, sharply felt counterpoint to OreGairu’s “People who don’t try have no right to complain about those with talent”

Also, this guy’s first actual line reminds me of all the KyoAni protagonists I actually like (Oreki, Kyon, Yuuta – yeah, they’ve kinda got a type, don’t they?), so that’s a good thing

4:22 – You know, the difference between male and female fanservice might really be enough. When a show like K-On has its characters act inhumanly clumsy and incompetent, I actively disengage and think “man, it is a truly, deeply problematic thing to find that helplessness attractive,” but here I just see the bare chests and laugh and laugh

4:34 – His hand is three times the size of that cat . Can someone explain Yaoi Hands to me?

5:07 – Hair sweep with cascading water  count: 2

On another note, I feel like one of the indications of how male-centric most anime are is that I immediately notice the presence of multiple equally confident and prominent male characters – normally there’s just the one central dude and a bunch of less-present side dudes or unthreatening comic relief characters (even KyoAni does this), the better to self-insert into the relationship drama with. Unless we’re talking action shows or whatever, which can often be homoerotic in their own way

5:20 – That’s right, let’s just leave the camera right… there .

5:37 – Who knew getting AotY was this easy? 

6:16 – “I hope it gets better soon so you can swim.” “HMM…” I guess that makes bighands Ritsu, then?

7:05 – “Want to eat on the roof?” “He needs to get a clue.” I love how in a normal show the tone would side with Haru-chan, but here there’s that upbeat synthy music playing and the show’s all YES. ROOF LUNCH FOR TWO DO IT

7:47 – “I don’t think I saw you after the club shut down.” “Yes, because I went to a different school.” Normally I’d complain about the hackneyed exposition, but… okay, yeah, sorry, that’s pretty damn hackneyed exposition

8:18 – “We’re not little kids anymore. Things aren’t the same.” Do all sports anime have literally the same plot? I mean, I understand that most artistry (lol) is in execution, and I actually like some sports stuff because of that (Cross Game, Girls und Panzer), but…

8:40 – “How about a hot springs club?” That’s nice. I like that genki just wants to be friends again, and isn’t immediately pulling the “but swimming WAS YOUR LIFE!” card

9:38 – “You live by yourself, Haru-chan?” Welp, that fills out MY anime cliché bingo card

10:53 – Years ago, on that day… they made a pledge beneath the sakura tree.  THE TREE REPRESENTS CHANGE

11:09 – “If you swim with me… I’ll show you a sight you’ve never seen before!” Not rising to that bait. I’ve made it this far, I can weather this storm

12:08 – Holy shit, we’re getting a haunted house in the first episode? How many bingo sheets am I gonna fill out?!?

13:10 – “Romantic, right?” Yeah man, romantic as fuck. This episode’s structure is honestly pretty solid, though – it’s a classic skeleton (reconnecting with an element of the past through combining reminiscence on a younger narrative with a series of current touchstones… there’s more to it than that, but you know exactly the kind of episode I’m talking about), but they’re executing it professionally enough. Community‘s a big fan of it

14:30 – This show is a gem.  I promised myself I wouldn’t do anything as difficult and stressful as a comedy-style writeup again after the exhaustion of Crime Edge, but this show’s raising a compelling counterargument

15:19 – I was about to make the “Jeez, Rin-chan sure has changed!” cliché joke, but then genki just straight-up says Rin-chan has kinda changed

15:24 – Precious detail: a scene transition that makes the screen wobble like water

17:21 – Oh, she’s dark and stormy’s sister? Right, the hair. That’ll be cute

18:48 – Goddamnit is Mio dere about swimming. Also, I really like this song

19:30 – “Can’t you wait?!” Swimming might come later, but that’s no excuse for Mio not to take his clothes off

21:20 – #3, and it’s a beauty 

Also, skinnydipping. Why not? That scene actually worked for me, so fuck the haters

21:50 – WHAT is this ED

22:08 – What

22:13 – I don’t even

23:01 – Yeah okay 

Seriously, this episode has had me laughing more than anything I’ve seen in the last few seasons. Goddamnit KyoAni

And Done

Goddamnit KyoAni. You assholes. This could not be more ridiculous. I can’t even… what… WHAT…

Agh, fuck it. See you next week.

Blood Ties and Nekomonogatari

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Well, this one was definitely simpler than Nise. Simple enough that I figured this writeup would be redundant – but I looked around online and, surprisingly, I couldn’t find a piece that really dove into the central theme. I’d planned on working on my backlog, but…

Alright. Fine. Hey guys. It’s Bobduh. Let’s talk Nekomonogatari.

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Dog and Scissors – Episode 1

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I’m not actually covering this, but there’s nothing else going on and I might as well open a page just in case. Morbid curiosity demands I check out anything with a title as ridiculous as Dog and Scissors.

Dear god it’s Dog Scissors

2:07 – What in all that is holy is this OP

3:13 – I already get the feeling this is the kind of show you only watch after losing a bet

3:53 – ‘Oh, he’s got his own apartment. Does that mean he’s actually an adult?’ “The winter of my third year of middle school, my entire family moved away…” Right. Of course.

5:21 – “I can’t die without reading that.” And the female MC is the author, and he dies and gets reincarnated as a dog? Okay, looks like we know the whole plot now

9:07 – Alright, “can’t die without completing last wish,” I get. But how that exactly translates to being reincarnated as a dog…

10:30 – “Yeah, I’m a dog, but more importantly I haven’t read anything in weeks!” Taking his doghood in stride. I like it

11:18 – I also like a story where the MC’s passion is reading books instead of, you know, panties or anime or erogames or whatever

11:39 – I would not sell a live animal to a woman who keeps a pair of scissors in a thigh-holster

11:47 – “Sorry to keep you waiting. The protagonist has appeared.” Ooh, are we gonna get all storytelling-meta here? By all means

16:35 – This show is pretty stupid, but that dog has great expressions. Particularly like his Is this nigga serious? face

18:01 – Alright, reincarnated dogs I’ll believe, but a novelist living in the top tax bracket? Pffff…

18:59 – Hah. Fan hysteria lasts for three seconds, then “hurry up and write the book I want.” Great

And Done

Well, that was about as silly as I expected.

Suisei no Gargantia – Review

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Suisei no Gargantia is a strange little show. It covers all of Urobuchi’s pet themes at once, while also shifting wildly in tone and pacing throughout. It combines a number of seemingly incompatible genres, including Ghibli-esque adventure, slice of life, sci-fi drama, action, and even some moments approaching psychological horror. It clearly displays some of the most supportable accusations generally leveled at Urobuchi – that his characters lack nuance or depth, and that his stories work primarily in support of ideas and have little power as narratives in and of themselves. Gargantia by itself is a pretty cogent argument for why Urobuchi is such a polarizing writer.

But the thing about polarizing writers is that for all the people they turn off, there are also plenty of people who really like what they do. Like, for example, me.

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Suisei no Gargantia – Episode 13

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This show is making these writeups pretty tough. Not because it’s difficult to suss out the various levels of this show – I think a second viewing would help elaborate the arcs of the different thematic points (the fear of entering society, the definition of humanity and the individual, the purpose of society, the roots of human conflict), but I also think I’m doing okay at noting a good number of them as they pass by.

No, this show is tough because I really like it and a lot of critics really don’t. I think it’s full of interesting ideas, I think the tricks it pulls with pacing and tone are very compelling, and I love the overall world it creates. The usual Urobuchi complaint is certainly in full effect here – that the characters and narrative work in service of the themes, and are thus somewhat weaker and more archetypal for it. But I don’t really have a problem with that; Ledo’s the only fully-articulated character, but not every show has to be about characters, and making this story’s cast and specifics more critical and distinct would make its ideas less universal. I also think it’s built to a pretty compelling finale here, and that the Kugel-being-dead reveal is a pretty effective way to complete Urobuchi’s diagnosis of the Alliance’s all-in society. I’m hoping Gargantia’s Stairway to Heaven doesn’t simplify everything, but I’m also excited to see another episode directly written by Urobuchi. Bring on the new Eden.

Episode 13

1:38 – “I am their support system. That is to say, I am the presence called God.” I guess it helps when the lines Urobuchi draws in the sand are the same ones I’d be prone to draw

2:27 – “One who abandons thought and decision-making deviates from the definition of ‘human’.” Yeah, this show is super-unfocused and lacking in clear themes [RES ignored duplicate image][1]

Sorry, I’ll stop throwing stones. It’s aggravating, though

3:11 – Striker’s getting a little Mwahaha here, but I actually really like how Chamber is the one articulating the nature of humanity, not Ledo

3:53 – “In this foreign environment, you have continuously made the correct decisions and maintained your humanity. As a result, I have not been corrupted.” This is an interesting line depending on how you’re interpreting the purpose of the robots. I’ll have to think about it

4:06 – “Let’s take it down.” “I am in full agreement.” #1 Bromance Spring 2013.

5:15 – “When we left Gargantia’s protection, we chose our own course. We can’t back down now.” Nice that they complicate the assuming adulthood idea a little, but still have Pinion himself back them up, who has already been interpreted through this lens earlier (when he was having doubts and the mechanic girl told him they all supported him)

6:20 – Pinion’s sticking to the path he’s chosen. His hero’s death was pretty heavily foreshadowed last episode, but it’s nice he gets a last moment with his crew

9:00 – And Chamber reaches full power by merging his will entirely with Ledo’s. Society is about the bonds we choose – it is not weakness to rely on each other, but it must be a willful, independent, human choice

10:47 – Hah! Their secret weapon is the bottom segment of the space elevator? Awesome

15:18 – “Goddamnit, quit it with the hero’s death monologue and let me save you!” Cute

19:02 – “A noncombatant is not allowed in the cockpit.” CHAMBER NO YOU ARE BEST BRO

21:17 – It makes sense thematically that the system which had coddled him had to die for him to enter society.That doesn’t make me feel any better

And Done

Whew! Man, that ended way more optimistically than I’d expected. I’d figured the Stairway to Heaven would cause some terrible repercussions, or at the very least that Pinion would die, but this show is fundamentally very optimistic, and all of its themes regard seeking our better nature and taking risks, so I guess punishing the characters for their attempts to fulfill their destiny or help each other would work directly against that. This last episode made the robots seem more or less entirely sentient, which I’m fine with – though I thought Striker’s elaboration of her society was pretty ham-handed and didn’t really make the most of the “optimal societies all work efficiently towards a central goal” and “happiness is narrowing your viewpoint till there is only one correct path and following it” stuff, which I found much more compelling. Overall, the show is clearly Urobuchi as fuck – it demonstrates a tremendous cynicism towards the influence of larger systems, and a tremendous faith in the power of individual agency and ambition, as well as individual, willfully chosen connections. I think it was Chamber’s speech about how the Hideauze’s evolution didn’t change the nature of their conflict that made me like him as a “character,” but he was awesome here, and I guess I’m just a sucker for these ideas and this world, cause his last stand really got to me even though it wasn’t fundamentally different from many similar speeches and battles. I am extremely satisfied.

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru – Review

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It’s a common complaint about anime. Why are so many series obsessed with high school? Why do we only get young protagonists? Why aren’t there more stories I can still relate to, now that I’ve grown beyond that setting? And it’s an extremely valid one – anime does squander its infinite potential by adhering to such similar settings, and we really are deeply lacking in protagonists covering the range of mature human experience. The reasons for this trend (the age of the fandom, the high premium placed on nostalgia and escapism, the natural tendency to continue making what sells, the adherence to safe formulas, etc) are as understandable as they are disappointing. And the complaint doesn’t even take quality into account, which is another issue – many of these shows tread the same ground, they often deal in archetypal, empty characters, they often exist as pure escapism or viewer self-insert fantasies, their humor repeats, their drama repeats worse, they exist as commercial shells and have no greater human ambitions. Sometimes it can feel like we’re well and truly fucked when it comes to imbedding some creative spark and ambition in this sea of similar, empty productions.

To this jaded and completely reasonable perspective (one which you can probably tell I largely agree with), I would have to say: OreGairu.

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Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru – Episode 13

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Guys I don’t even know. Can I take this? Will tomorrow even be worth living through? I’ve suffered a lot in my life, but this, this…

OreGairu is ending, you guys. What am I gonna do.

I’m not gonna get all weepy now – I’ll save the histrionics for the review. I know the actual show is pretty much already over, and that this final episode is an anime-original. It’s almost like they knew I’d need one more nostalgic adventure with these characters. This episode also marks the original light novel writer’s first time collaborating on an anime (I think). This is a good thing, because I want him writing all of the shows from now on, and he has to start somewhere. Hopefully in a few years he will work at all the studios and write everything.

Doing my best to stay objective here. Oh god. Here come the tears. Fuck it, roll the episode.

Episode 13

0:37 – “If everything is worth experiencing, then there’s little doubt that the feeling of not experiencing something is, in itself, worth experiencing.” -Sniff- I’m gonna miss you, buddy

0:52 – “The worst part is how convincing he is despite not being consistent at all.” So damn cute together. And once more the show outright says that Hikki’s philosophy is nonsense, something most of the criticism aimed at this show seems to miss entirely. The feeling of not experiencing something may be worth experiencing, but the feeling of not experiencing OreGairu seems like a pretty big loss for those guys

6:45 – It’s funny seeing an actual legitimately energetic person make Yui as weirded out as the misanthropes

8:10 – Also funny seeing how into this project Yui is getting. This is basically a fanservice episode, but fanservice in this show is just the characters being themselves around each other

10:50 – I say that, and then we actually get Yui in a Saber costume

11:47 – And Hayama takes the gold. I’d be perfectly happy if the rest of the episode were just a Hayama being awesome montage

12:57 – And then there’s nice callouts like remembering Silver’s weakness is fashion, or finally pairing the two otaku together for an episode

13:55 – “The starting shell has been blown!” This episode is completely insane

17:50 – “If it’s for you, I can handle way more than this!” My god this episode. That rallying speech was hilarious too. I didn’t think such a derp episode could be so satisfying

19:27 – “Did you really think I’d leave you unmarked?” Of course Hayama’s also totally buying into it. I think this probably all works for me because after the trials of the series, it’s just really satisfying to see these characters have fun together for once

21:23 – “You were watching too?” “I-I just happened to see it.” Thirteen episodes in, and we have finally arrived at the tsundere starting line. Life is tough

And Done

Well, that was surprisingly fun. I figured it’d be pretty much a write-off bonus episode, and it kinda was, but they ran with that and had the characters actually cut loose and be comfortably silly together. Definitely nice to see the brighter life they’ve earned through the course of this series.

Hataraku Maou-sama! – Review

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Maou is kind of a tricky beast to review, because though it’s always fundamentally a comedy, it puts on a number of specific hats throughout its run – satire, sitcom, drama, action, romance, etc. But it’s actually normally quite good at whatever it attempts; the action finales of 5 and 11/12 are fairly satisfying, the everyday life drama of the central characters is more believably slice of life than most actual slice of life shows, the characters are decently well-written (with a caveat – but I’ll get to that). The show’s overall high level of storytelling and aesthetic craft is almost certainly its greatest asset – but it can also sometimes kinda be its greatest weakness.

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Hataraku Maou-sama! – Episode 13

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And so we find our shift coming to an end.

Hataraku Maou-sama! has been a number of things over this season. It’s been a takedown of the fantasy genre (briefly), an everyday slice of life sitcom (frequently), a backwards jab at our current society (very occasionally), a character-focused comedy (constantly), and an action/drama (when it really feels like it). No show has forced me to adjust my expectations so often – sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. There were moments when I thought it was getting pretty damn ambitious, but ultimately I’m happy enough with it settling for being well-written, smartly paced, and endlessly likeable. It couldn’t be a more obvious choice for a second season, so I suspect we’ll be seeing these characters again soon, but even still, I hope this last episode gives them the sendoff they deserve.

Episode 13

0:56 – “I have to return to Ente Isla. I’m sorry.” I love when this show just plays a dumb genre scene completely straight. It’s like the joke is “we don’t have to make a joke here, these stupid overwrought anime parting scenes are a joke already.” If you find boob size jokes more funny than this, I don’t know what to say to you

1:45 – Chucking Sariel through the gate by his foot is a nice gag. I also like that they’re just summarizing the aftermath this time, and that they’re starting the episode off with the underlying question of whether the status quo will end. This show is always solid on the fundamentals

3:47 – “Truly, we are star crossed lovers…” The joke isn’t great, but the musical accompaniment is. This show’s soundtrack is almost as good as its expressions

7:00 – “Just checking up on him? Isn’t it about time you two stopped making excuses to one another?” I AGREE. How many light novels is this series, again?

I know, it’s somewhere around eight. Don’t remind me – goddamn serial entertainment…

7:17 – “He slaughtered my whole village – I can’t forgive him for that.” Oh come on. I have waited NINE EPISODES for this goddamn conflict to progress, and they decide to remember it now? You are a cruel bastard, Maou

Again, I know, serial entertainment and all that, but I can’t help feeling that aside from introducing Suzuno, we might as well just now be reaching episode 6 actual-narrative-wise

8:23 – I love how Emi coming in doesn’t make Maou feel guilty at all, but as soon as Asriel enters he realizes he’s being fawned over by two girls. Asriel truly is best general

11:58 – This episode’s getting some good mileage out of actually subtle dramatic expressions. Nice to see they can use their facial powers for good as well as evil

17:53 – “Why is a demon general getting worked up over working for an evil corporation, anyway?” Aw man. They were doing so well, and then they had to explain the damn joke. Tragedy

20:21 – I really didn’t expect this last episode to be entirely dedicated to Lucifer falling for an internet scam, but it’s somehow kind of appropriate

22:23 – Love this ED singer’s voice in all her stuff

23:12 – Cute circle – befriending Emi cost him his umbrella and befriending Suzuno cost him Dullahan, but here Emi is getting his back

And Done

Hah! That’s all we get. Well, they certainly are confident in that second season – this one didn’t resolve shit.

Anyway, kinda funny and random final episode – Someday in the Rain level of anticlimax there, where it’s just another day in their meandering lives. It certainly wasn’t a highlight, but it wasn’t trying to be. I think it worked.