Attack on Titan – Episode 11

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Well, this fucker’s taking a while to, uh, be legally purchased, so I might as well lay out the score.

I think this show’s been kinda struggling lately. My initial thoughts were: cool concept, the animation of the action scenes is great, the dramatic scenes come off as unfortunately melodramatic. My thoughts in the middle stretch, through the training and the gas raid, were: alright, cool, it’s pretty superficial, but it’s a fun action show and I like the idea of a sort of chessboardy squad-based tactical drama.

Recently?

Man, these last two episodes really didn’t do it for me. The pacing has slowed to something well below a crawl – we’ve spent 40 minutes of screentime watching Eren, Armin, and Mikasa have a brief argument with a lunatic. There have been a lot of flashbacks, a lot of gaping, horrified expressions, and a lot of frantic repeated arguments.

I have not been impressed.

Fortunately, Pixis is apparently a huge plot-progressing badass, and he has successfully shoved us towards our next daring action gambit. This show occasionally pulls out some really superb moments that push character/plot development while also working as frenetic entertainment – I’m thinking of stuff like Mikasa’s resolution to live just before Ereoten (yeah, I’m rolling Commie) appeared, or Eren’s transformation sequence into Ereoten at the end of 9. But I think the show is most consistent when it’s using the ensemble cast for daring heroism – and this attempt to re-secure the wall makes me hope we’re getting more of that. Either way, more Pixis for me.

Episode 11

3:06 – “That plan I came up with is ridiculous, and we’re just running with it?” “I was thinking the same thing.” Yeah Armin, turns out Eren just wanted to make you feel included last episode. Congrats on your character development, though!

3:57 – “The Titans aren’t our only enemies.” Well, first of all, I was running Commie regardless, but I am very thankful they’ve decided to back down on that incredibly self-satisfied translation. But more importantly, this hopefully means we’re gonna get into the psychology of war stuff – either through needing to give the people hope, or through needing to make a terrified populace accept something like Eren’s power

4:22 – Man makes horrified expression and grabs own head. Commanding officer turns back, wearing horrified expression. Horrified expression count: 2.

4:37: 4

4:44: 5

4:55: 9

5:01: 11

5:30 – Okay, mocking this show’s one expression is fun and all, but that sequence actually did go into the fraying mental state of the soldiers, which will hopefully lead to the importance of symbols or something (omg Eren is Batman), which is a good place for this show to be going

5:48 – “If a powerful external threat were to appear, mankind would cease its squabbles and unite.” Alan Moore nods approvingly

6:30 – I like Eren’s “head in the game, scrub ” expression

7:10 – And Eren can’t hold his liquor. I swear, this show has the weirdest sense of humor. On that note, brb whiskey

8:16 – Pixis just keeps going up. Awesome that he’s immediately framing Eren’s trump card as a known top-secret project, so it’s just another encouraging, reliable piece of their military apparatus, and not a crazy what-the-fuck-is-that nobody knows anything about

10:33 – “There’s a limit to how much one can be motivated by terror.” Interesting choice of words, considering it seems Pixis’ speech is designed to keep the troops level-headed and removed from their fear. Is this getting back to the complacency of the first episode, where the lack of an immediate threat weakened the military into indolence? Not sure what else they’re referring to

11:26 – “Traitors? I’LL CUT YOU DOWN WHERE YOU STAND!” Oh man! Weirdy beardy might be a terrible leader and strategist, but he’s got Pixis’s back! In his own, poorly-thought-through, likely-to-cause-a-riot kind of way

11:40 – Hold the phone, isn’t that the lady of Pixis’s dreams? 

12:17 – YES! Rally the FUCK out of those troops, Pixis! God, it is so good to see a goddamn general doing his actual goddamn job, and doing it well – I get pretty tired of all authority figures being incompetent buffoons

13:44 – This speech is fantastic. Maybe the best moment of the series so far. No complaints

13:45 – “I don’t know if I can move that boulder, but I do know my dick is diamonds after that motherfucking speech.”

14:07 – “I must become a symbol of hope for everyone.” What was that, Eren? I’m not sure I heard you – were you ratifying my suspicions about the entire point of this episode or something?

14:36 – Sweet, weirdy beardy’s glasses-pusher assistant will be joining us. I do love a good glasses-pusher

15:53 – Pixis knows the plan is a massive gamble, so he attacks the logical elites through their pride, not their intellect. He is taking this show the fuck over, and I could not be more cool with that

16:42 – Judging a man by the caliber of his drinking. C’mon Titan, I know when I’m being pandered to

17:30 – “I’m neither your little brother nor your kid.” It’s nice to see Eren directly address Mikasa’s very specific relationship with him. I think a lot of this show’s overwhelming commercial success lies in its avoidance of overt anime-isms, and “they have a weird super-personal relationship and nobody talks about it” is one anime-ism I am very happy to see die in a fire

19:25 – Excellent, excellent little piece of episode-specific storytelling there. That would-be deserter was given a full narrative arc: from urging others to justify his desertion, to leading the exodus himself, to being drawn back by his desire to protect his family, to acting as one of the most stalwart believers in the necessity of their plan. And he wasn’t even given a name. Fantastic storytelling

21:20 – Jesus christ, does this show burn 98% of its budget on these flying sequences? Not actually complaining

And Done

Damn! Not sure specifically what that ending implies, but it reeks of a cheap cliffhanger that will be resolved in the first ten seconds of the next episode, so I ain’t worried.

But fuck that noise. That episode was awesome! I think it was pretty easily my favorite of the series so far. My hopes for Pixis couldn’t have been better-placed – he kept the plot moving at an extremely satisfying clip, was full of entertaining one-liners and casually tossed off a ridiculously inspired and thematically relevant speech. Speaking of thematics, holy shit, this episode actually had some real ideas! For the first time, I felt this show moved beyond being entirely about narrative points moving to other narrative points, and dabbled in greater ideas of how our mentality and psychology can dictate our potential. It was pretty much the classic Batman stuff (the people need a symbol), but I’m not complaining. It also advanced several characters in a much less beating-you-on-the-nose way than Armin’s turn last week, outlined the greater significance of this conflict, and refused to wallow in tedious despair. Pixis, you’re a pretty cool guy. Keep on slapping this show into fighting shape

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru – Episode 11

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Well here we are boys and girls. The best part of the week. Working on these writeups is honestly kinda regularly stressful, but OreGairu definitely makes me appreciate the way 23 minutes can stretch to an hour. There are many shows that I love, but OreGairu is pretty close to the one I would actually want to make.

Okay, I’d actually emphasize the romance more, and there’d probably be an FLCL-esque fantastical metaphor for some of the underlying personal themes, and I’d let more scenes rise to cathartic release and not cut them off with harsh, realistic anticlimax. But still!

Many weeks ago, someone mentioned how the festival we’re now in the thick of would probably mark the halfway point of the light novels. Narrative-wise, that feels about right – Hikki still has a long way to go, and the character turn Yuki’s about to hit isn’t going to “fix” everything, or possibly anything. But it will certainly change things.

Both their viewpoints have always been naïve and hypocritical, but they’ve always managed to distance the contradictory elements of their philosophies and personalities from each other. Right now, Yuki’s caught deep in the lie of her need to be better than her sister – she can’t accept that she’s just a very different person with very different strengths. If things had gone normally, she’d probably be willing to rely on Hikki to help her at this point – he’s the one person who understands her well enough for her to act shields-down around. But right now, he’s also the person most representative of her hypocrisy. And so, with no escape route that doesn’t require giving up her pride, she’s fled from the situation.

Hikki’s viewpoint is less complicated – he’s convinced he knows the rules and hates the game, so he refuses to play and tells himself it’s better that way. Last week proved he’s not so callous as all that – he deliberately made a fool of himself for the sake of Yuki’s pride. He tells himself he can’t forgive her, but I think he already has, and the only reason this charade is going on is because he’s too attached to his fraying viewpoint as well.

Honestly, it’s freaking poetry watching this house of cards crumble down. They could certainly take an easy route out here – since Yuki accepted Hikki’s rescue with relative grace, they could conceivably have Hikki continue to resolve this situation – but that’s pretty much the last thing I want to see. Yuki needs this more than Hikki does. Bring on the blood.

Episode 11

1:19 – Jeez Hikki, calling Yui? You are terrible at not caring about this situation

5:41 – Aw man, they’re being such good friends here. No defensiveness at all – “I won’t tell you some idealistic nonsense, but this can’t be the right way to handle this.” “What is the right way, then?” “I don’t know”

6:10 – Yesssss. “Not ‘someone,’ or ‘everyone,’ rely on us.” Yui ain’t playing games with their philosophical bullshit – this is about whether they can trust each other

6:11 – And of course Yuki can’t possibly respond to that

7:16 – Hikki’s signature move – leaving the room when the other two express an honest moment, uncomfortable and assuming he’s not meant to be a part of it, the way it’s always been

7:38 – “They say if you change yourself you can change the world, but that’s a complete lie.” God, he’s such a fuckin’ prick. He’s being offered the open door here, but he’s still determined to stick to his pride. That’s understandable, of course – he articulated his fear of getting betrayed during the Yui fight. Still sucks to see it, though

9:20 – “If you look at it closely, one side is just relaxing.” Goddamn, Hikki. I doubt Yuki wants this – this is all yourrage here

10:40 – Nope, she’s cool with it! I don’t think initial Yuki would have taken kindly to being supported this way – she may not be willing to rely on them, but she certainly won’t reject their support

11:09 – And it really did help – Hikki’s attack put Sagami incredibly off-balance, allowing Yuki to regain control of the meeting and the committee. Damn, Hikki!

11:34 – “You make excuses for the dumbest things, but you won’t do it when you actually need to, will you?” Looks like he’s more of your ideal person, then you thought, eh Yuki? NOW KISS

12:29 – Oh my god they’re adorable. Okay, so Yuki wasn’t actually forced to clear up the initial problem, and Hikki did in fact make a tremendous peace offering. So the conflict didn’t force the Yuki breakthrough I was hoping for, but either way they’re back to bantering again

15:53 – Man, how is Sagami gonna fuck everything up? They’ve spent an entire episode having her make vindictive pouty faces

16:52 – “Vice-Chairman… we can all hear you flirting with Hikki.”

17:42 – This might be the first time I’ve actually laughed at Trap, purely because Hayama hamming it up is just amazing. Hayama is so great

19:16 – They share a look yet again. This is actually worrying – this episode is pressing Hikki and Yuki’s relationship so positively and aggressively that it’s pretty much guaranteed something is going to go horribly wrong

19:41 – “So I haven’t heard anything about what you want to know.” Seriously. She’s not an idiot, Hikki

And Done

D’awww. All three of these characters are so adorable when they’re actually getting along. The resolution to Yuki getting cornered ended up requiring fewer concessions than I’d expected, but of course, this show is always more about subtle changes in perspective than groundbreaking paradigm shifts. And this episode certainly changed some perspectives – Yuki in particular was much more honest than before, and her confidence is beginning to come across as less brittle and more natural. There’s no edge in her humor any more – she and Hikki are perfectly comfortable with each other (so comfortable they were making everyone else uncomfortable, which was a nice gag), and Hikki’s “inability to forgive her” certainly has a strange way of expressing itself, what with his casting himself as the villain specifically to rescue her. Granted, that’s something that’s always come naturally to him, but as opposed to his work with the club, this time there was no possible pretense involved – he was just working hard to help a close friend.

And yeah, “close friend.” This episode had Yuki regularly smiling, openly admitting her friendship with Hikki through that “see you tomorrow,” and pretty much overtly flirting with him. Meanwhile, Hikki makes an incredibly obvious pass at seeing how she feels about him, and gets encouraged to admit his feelings for himself. With two episodes to go, a traditional ending would dictate a final act of desperation from Sagami that throws everything in jeopardy, a temporary break in Yuki and Hikki’s current trust, and an ultimate reconciliation that wraps up all the loose ends. But this isn’t a traditional show, and it’s an adaptation of an ongoing series anyway. I’d personally be perfectly happy with Live Alive Redux followed by a full episode of smooches, but something tells me it’s not gonna be quite that simple.

Welp, time to not watch more OreGairu for seven days…

Hataraku Maou-sama! – Episode 11

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Hataraku Maou-sama!

And jeez, look at the time. Three weeks left? What does that mean?

Well, first, it means we’re almost certainly in core narrative mode again – last episode followed twenty minutes of nothing happening with ten seconds of revealing that the Mysterious Assassin is Sentucky is Part Angel, which wasn’t exactly the most dramatic way to go about that, but whatever, that’s where we’re at.

What else does it mean?

It means I don’t give a fuck about losing the crowd. Let’s be frank for a moment – I thought last week’s episode was terrible. Worst episode so far. Pointless, didn’t do anything for the characters or the story, fanservicey, and the least funny episode of the season. I’ve lost the crowd by being too harsh on this show before, but believe me, I’m coming from a place of wanting this show to be great. And it normally is! At this point, I’ve pretty much come to terms with the interesting class/society stuff just being a lark and not actually a theme – all I really want is for the jokes to be funny, the narrative resolution to be snappy, and the character relationships to actually move forward a few inches. I don’t think that’s too much to ask!

So that’s where I’m coming from. Now let’s see where this is going.

Episode 11

2:12 – Yep, there’s Sentucky added to the OP. Kind of a funny reflection of this show’s balancing of drama and slice of life that it initially hides plot developments in the OP, but then adds them to the perky lineup as soon as they’re actually introduced

3:05 – Oh man, you know something’s actually gonna happen when they start the episode with an Ente Isla flashback

4:38 – HER WEAPON IS A GIANT HAMMER. Of course. Why wouldn’t it be? The giant hammer has a long, illustrious tradition as a tool of assassins and inquisitors

5:36 – It’s nice that they establish her as having doubted her work for a long time, so it’s not all just everyone falling for Maou’s irrepressible charms

6:00 – Interested in Suzuno? But… but …

6:31 – Why is this show so cruel to Alsiel?

7:57 – I was hoping it was liquor for a moment there. I’m pretty much always in favor of characters getting drunk together

8:53 – I’m pretty fine with the moments when this show just has the characters deal with the mundanities of life together, particularly when it’s acting as the scaffolding of a character turn like Suzuno’s here. I actually like slice of life with good characters, but am not a fan of the current-definition slice of life that is more escapism than still life, and doesn’t actually have any bearing on characters or situations I could possibly relate to

Hey, you know what’s good? Yotsuba

9:33 – So Sentucky is clearly part-angel, but his relationship to Suzuno is pretty unclear – Emi was half-angel, but seemed to be on the side of the knights and only allied with the church, not a part of their organization. With Sentucky proving angelic heritage isn’t the sole right of the hero, how does religion actually work in their world? Are the church and the deities they represent actually combined into a single influence-hungry power structure? Cynical idea. I like it

10:13 – Okay, so Emi actually was an instrument of the church

11:00 – This is great. Using the dramatic downfall of a very public figure to justify their brutal power-grabbing actions during times of conflict, and then immediately falling back on a more even-handed system when their supremacy is assured to keep the people from rebelling. Okay, it’s not particularly subtle, but what can I say? Organized religion and I have never really gotten along

12:26 – Yeah yeah, dump on Alsiel, etc. I made a joke before, but they are kind of running this gag into the ground

15:33 – Yes! Conflict! Make Emi take a stand on Maou! Make Chiho cry!

Man, this show is so great when it’s actually moving forward

16:00 – “Did you ever meet him before he became Maou Sadao?” Man. Perfect fucking question, that actually gets back at the heart of my favorite idea I thought this show had abandoned – the relatively well-intentioned people who are so high up they can’t see the consequences of their actions or the way the world moves beneath them

17:00 – I was just thinking, “It’s nice that Emi’s still here for this impassioned pro-Maou speech,” and then the show of course gives us a shot of her taking it all in

17:49 – The jump cuts between Suzuno’s protests and memories here are so well done – this episode has built to this moment masterfully. She has to be right. If she isn’t, what did she kill all those people for?

19:35 – “This is my ability… Convenient Enemy-Incapacitating Plot Device!” Oh come on. That bullshit’s for shounen tripe, Maou – at least make his ability relevant to their shared heritage or something

19:54 – Oh. They did. Carry on!

20:03 – Omigod his wings look so silly

And Done

Oh man! HEATING UP! Goddamn, the difference between an on and off day for this show is absurd. That second half was so good! Like episode 4, this one was extremely light on humor, but I didn’t care at all because the characters and drama were handled so damn well. Suzuno had earned a spot as a member of the comedy troupe, but this episode was obviously wholly focused on her dramatic arc. At first, I was afraid they were overselling a character who really wasn’t going to pull her dramatic weight… but that last exchange with Emi was definitely one for the show highlight reel. It’s looking like Emi isn’t actually going to be forced to take a real stand here (unsurprising, since there are apparently many more LNs to adapt), since Sentucky attacked her before she was ever forced to actually defend Maou, but if the show keeps up this level of tension and effective drama, that won’t matter at all. Sweet episode. Bring on the climax!

Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge – Episode 11

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You know I’ve reached the point where I type up intros for this crap, revise them, and then scrap them because they’re not good enough? This is ridiculous. I was planning on doing a Lovecraft redux, and actually have the prologue for that written, but then I realized my list of remaining Lovecraft-specific gags consisted of:

  1. Make a joke where the narrator thinks Kiri is invoking a dark ritual, but he’s actually just gagging on hair.
  2. Lovecraft is crazy-racist.

So, not a whole lot to work off. Either way, things are heating up in the land of knife-wielding loli imoutos, and I don’t just mean that sexually. Not to say sexually isn’t one of the ways I mean that. Be- because it is.

Just to be clear.

We have Lolino acting almost as tsun as her namesake, we have the vague and incoherent machinations of Gossip stumbling around in the shadows, and, close to home, we have our beloved title pair, tied together by the hairs of fate, torn apart by the heartless arms of plot necessity. Last week they relinquished their facades and vowed to maintain a new honesty, strengthening their implacable bonds of love and affection – but will it be enough? Will the power of love triumph over the forces of darkness? Will the good, clean honesty of Kiri’s unimpeachable fetishes triumph over the wicked, uncaring eyes of society?

Frankly, I hope not. If this shit gets renewed, I’ll end up with enough material to publish. Kill ’em all, Lolino.

Episode 11

0:00 – By the way, when I was building that last paragraph, I was trying to fit in a line about the manga’s author, and realized for the first time that the personal nature of this fantasy is even more overt than I thought – the author of a story lionizing weird fetishes has actually defined those fetish aficionados as superheroes known as… authors. Ba-fucking-dum-psh.

0:18 – Am I the only one who just sees continuous electricity between our main two at this point? Once again, I have to ask why fucking Crime Edge is the show demonstrating that relationship drama doesn’t get boring as soon as the characters actually enter a fucking relationship.

It reminds me of that new interview with the Chuunibyou director, where he said he’s going to slow down the relationship between the main pair because apparently tension is lost as soon as they kiss. No. No, that is a lie. No and fuck you very much. C’mon directors, grow a pair and realize not every interesting moment of a relationship occurs in the first five percent of one. Goddamnit

This may sound like me just ranting because I never get to see any of my favorite characters slobbering all over each other, but I assure you that’s only half true

3:52 – “Apparently she fulfills the requirements to be the Author of that magical artifact.” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Don’t worry, it took me a few episodes too

6:15 – I’m so glad we’re getting such a thorough, detailed explanation of Lolino’s backstory and motivation. I was really wondering about that.

6:54 – These dogs are making me extremely uncomfortable. 6:35-6:44 is even worse thanNibutanixCerberus

9:20 – “So that’s why she inflicted so many small cuts on me.” Yes, her strategy was to not hurt you too badly, because otherwise you might die before her magic knife got to kill you. Well, as far as Crime Edge murder-strategies goes, that one’s actually fairly ahead of the curve

10:30 – C’mon, fish girl. Just lick them. You know you want to

10:43 – “I knew it. Killing Goods.” What a remarkable first guess

11:20 – “Not even a doctor could help you with these unhealing wounds.” Seriously struggling to not make a “Crawling in my skin” joke here

11:56 – I’ve never been one for the Innsmouth Look, but that is moe as fuck

13:06 – SHAME ON BOTH OF YOU! To think fishwoman would cheat on her sister like this… I’m sorry I ever thought she was moe

15:30 – CRIME EDGE STOP THAT THIS INSTANT THIS IS VERY CONFUSING TO ME

16:21 – “If I could see him in my dreams… would I become stronger?” Holy shit, that’s an honest-to-goodness reasonable plot development! Developing himself as an Author would increase his ability to protect Iwai while simultaneously weakening his resistance against the Killing Goods. A plot turn that also bears inherent relevance on the character development and relationship drama? I didn’t know you had it in you, Crime Edge!

17:39 – So is Grayland gonna become his spirit sensei now? Well, it’s worked before

19:52 – “Knife, Gun, and Poison.” Oh god, three super-authors and only two episodes to go? If this shit gets renewed I am going on strike

20:03 – Oh Kiri. “Now that I’ve told you what I’m doing and where I’m going, would you mind telling me if you plan on killing my girlfriend?”

22:25 – “Besides, today’s…” What. The anniversary of his death, perhaps? And you’re visiting his grave? The grave of the father of the girl who’s trying to kill you? The girl you’re attempting to become stronger than, because you know she’ll currently murder your ass flat?

Brilliant, Kiri. You’ve really outdone yourself this time

And Done

Damn! That last scene was beautifully shot and perfectly scored – one of the rare but consistent times where the show indulges a moment in a really great, somewhat beautiful and somewhat creepy way – like the extended piano song at the bar, or Kiri and Iwai dancing under the stars. More of those please!

Anyway. This episode would have been pretty dull if it weren’t being so goddamn lewd all the time… no, yeah, it was pretty dull either way. All dem infodumps were somewhat redeemed by actually being kind of effective, but they were still a series of infodumps about Killing Goods, and this show rarely makes me care about it by actually trying to make me care. As any of you who know my tastes can attest, only blood or sex will satisfy my anime lusts, and this episode was clearly holding out on me. If it weren’t for that strangely alluring fishwoman, I’d have to consider this one a wash.

Hmm… fishwoman…

Yeah, not sure how I feel about these emotions. I’m think I’m gonna go sort some stuff out, you guys. I’ll see you next week.

Suisei no Gargantia – Episode 10

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Well, you did it, Gargantia. You slowrolled the butchering for eight fucking episodes. You really did have me going there – the show didn’t really need to go to a super-dark place to make its points about society and identity. But I guess there was no way this Flange fleet separation was going to end well, and this choice is certainly suitably horrific.

What happens now? Ledo and Chamber seem to have a difference of opinion regarding the justice of their mission. Is Ledo’s highest-ranking-officer trick not gonna cut it now that Chamber knows the nature of this sensitive information? They’re obviously playing up the similarities between the Alliance and Hideauze as much as possible – though the Hideauze look more like animals, from the very first episode it seemed clear that the Alliance was meant to represent humanity as a single hivelike organism, with all individual actions filtering down from a central goal. Are the Hideauze any different? Is Gargantia itself the only example of a communal but still individualist society?

Fuck if I know. Let’s find out.

Episode 10

1:17 – The blood on his hands is a metaphor for the blood on his hands.

1:43 – Doesn’t everyone just love this jaunty OP?

5:50 – “Tell everyone we got the treasure! That’ll scare ’em!” Okay, Pinion, this is just dumb as fuck. There has to be a limit to his bravado – his choice to wipe out the nest was both calculated and based on his brother’s death, but this just the action of a lunatic, and reeks of plot necessity

8:55 – “I annihilated the hideauze! I FEAR NOTHING!” You are one damaged kid, Ledo. I really wish the episode would just focus on him, his breakdown is much more interesting than the damn fleet politics

10:23 – “Did Ledo really wipe out the whalesquids?” “Yes. It was a stupid thing to do.” Why? Why, from what they know of the situation, would it be a stupid thing to do? Clearly we know why – but we have a lot more information than them. Is it just respect for animals in general that motivates these guys? Because I have to say, if there were a nest of some generic wild animals standing between the fleet and hundreds of years of human science, culture, and technology, that really wouldn’t be a difficult choice for me. Sorry!

11:47 – “They’re out of ammo! Keep firing!” Reaaally not liking this crazy turn from Pinion. He’s changing from “pragmatic, egotistical, vindictive” to just “straight-up villainous,” and that’s never good for a story

13:05 – “We’ll be invincible!” So Pinion’s basically standing in for the dangerous blind ambition of humanity here? Man, that’s a whole other idea unrelated to the societal stuff, the identity stuff, or the arbitrary human conflict stuff from last episode. If they can actually pull these strands together…

13:26 – Between Flange and the pirate captain, we’ve also now had two leaders in a row swiftly lose their authority in the face of huge personal gain for their subordinates. That actually does contrast nicely against Gargantia’s ideal of humane co-prosperity

15:30 – “Or the first time I got inside Chamber… this Machine Caliber?” Love that little self-correction. Way more subtle of a distinction than the Pinion stuff

16:00 – “It’s a beam weapon similar to my own.” So have Ledo and Chamber basically just created the one superpower capable of actually fighting them on the planet? That might be the last necessary puzzle piece to see the ending  – one easy narrative route it could go from here would be having Ledo flee from the Flange group when asked to raid another nest, and ultimately have to confront them again on the side of Gargantia

16:28 – “Would it work if we harnessed the lightbugs?” Oh boy. If that’s also relevant, the theoretical end to the conflict would be mankind’s weapons of absurd overkill making their own environment unsustainable. Can’t imaginethat ever happening…

18:45 – Good. Chamber’s actually bothering to articulate the very relevant counterargument here – “yeah, sure, they’re humans too. So what? They’re still trying to exterminate us”

21:35 – I’m gonna need to watch through that whole Chamber speech a couple more times, but it’s kinda funny how much of the discussions last week’s episode prompted he’s now just directly articulating

And Done

What the fuck? How the fuck did Kugel get here – is there another gate? That would be… hm.

Man. The first half of that episode was pretty slow, and involved too much cackling villainy from Pinion, but the second half made up for it in spades, going directly into both Ledo’s personal doubts and the philosophical questions framing them. There was plenty to unpack in that last speech of Chamber’s – his points about intellect and civilization were reasonable, but it went all over the place… “beings who seek only happiness and self-gratification don’t require a higher intellect,” for instance. Could he be including the culture of Gargantia there? And talking about “the pride of the human race,” or how the Hideauze are actually a higher life form, or how Ledo will understand after he accumulates more experiences – his ultimate point seems to be the pragmatic “in a war between such linked but diametrically opposed forces, there can only be utter victory or utter extinction, and thus we must fight,” but he certainly took a roundabout route to arrive at it.

Either way, the show keeps introducing new ideas, but last week’s ideas were handled beautifully this time, so I’m very hopefully the introduction of Kugel will be a positive one as well. I got pretty much all the Ledo development I could have asked for, and Chamber proving himself to be quite the unexpected philosopher was just icing on the cake. Bring on the next episode!

Attack on Titan – Episode 10

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Yeah, that’s right, Eren’s a superhero now. The fuck you gonna do about it?

Episode 10

2:30 – Jeez, I forgot this battle’s been going on for six damn episodes. I guess the constant flashbacks will do that…

2:50: Speak of the flashback…

3:42 – “My tummy hurts!” This show has such a weird sense of humor. At this point, the number of despair faces and despair speeches we’ve run through in the past few episodes has definitely tipped into the realm of self-parody, but you’re actually supposed to take most of them seriously, and then there’s a joke like this that basically acknowledges how wide-eyed despair has become almost every character’s default expression. But aside from the silly gag, it doesn’t actually separate itself from the serious despair scenes in any tonal way. For a show that puts so much stock in maintaining its grim atmosphere, it seems weirdly flippant about how easily it can be perceived as comedy

4:30: Carpenters and stonemasons must make a killing in this world, what with all the constant holes in walls and roofs from the soldiers flinging themselves around

5:32 – Great, so when Eren claims to not be a titan, the captain opens fire – but when he actually morphs into one, he orders everyone to hold position

6:18 – “I heard the cannons fire…” For this episode, the role of flashback will be played by Armin’s narration

6:30 – Flowers? Hm. Odd bit of foreshadowing there – no idea what it could mean yet

7:04 – “We can’t negotiate with the garrison.” Isn’t there a single person in the chain of command who isn’t a goddamn idiot with no ability to process new information? I mean, I get that taking the risk of trying to negotiate with people who just cannon’d you is probably a bad call, but this captain is just such an openly incompetent and antagonistic character that it’s frustrating having the plot be dictated by his insane ramblings

7:56 – “Eren, we’ve got other matters to attend to.” Thank you Mikasa. Freakin’ Eren monologuing himself into another cannon barrage…

8:17 – “Hold your fire! I’m getting dust in my eyes!”

8:55 – “That explains the lack of durability and functions.” So his power basically manifests titanism designed to fulfill his current base desire? That works. Still monologuing with cannons pointed at him, though

11:03 – Yesss, develop Armin. He’s been static for too long, and these other two desperately need a competent person who thinks before they act

11:18 – That said, the flashback meter is going crazy right now

12:09 – “Using these powers strategically, as part of the military…” YES. PLEASE.

14:01 – That’s right, Armin. Believe in the Eren and Mikasa who believe in you!

14:27 – “I’ll use my brain even while I’m talking!” Is that… not what he usually does?

17:25 – Legitimately nice speech by Armin there – appealing to their camaraderie as soldiers was a good call. I wonder who’s gonna appear at the last moment to stop this idiot captain?

17:41 – PIXIS?!?!

17:59 – “You go take command of the reinforcements.” Why is anyone letting this man take command of ANYTHING?He couldn’t fucking strategize his way through a ham sandwich

Also, I accidentally paused to type this at the most perfect moment [RES ignored duplicate image][1] . Armin, you are beautiful

19:07 – Man, I get the feeling Pixis and I are gonna get along just fine

20:38 – “It was just something I came up with to give people hope Eren’s power could get us out of this.” Wow. This one sentence hopefully puts all those despair faces into perspective. If this is actually a thematically meaningful statement, it also explains the focus on the irrationality of the soldiers when dealing with Eren earlier – this show might actually be interested in the irrational nature of human optimism, pessimism, and morality, and have characters actively manipulating either their subordinates or the general populace for the greater good. That’s a really compelling idea, and one I hope the show continues to pursue

Also, if it is true, it basically means Eren is this world’s Batman – “the people need a symbol” and all that

21:46 – “Will you give it a shot, or not?” I understand how drama-wise we need to keep up the momentum, but this seriously doesn’t seem like how an intelligent commander would take the news of a trump card as critical as Eren’s powers. His abilities seem very literally to be the difference between survival and extinction – they should test the goddamn things, and devise exactly how they can be best employed. Sure, it’ll mean more titans enter Trost – but Trost doesn’t seem strategically significant anyway. This is not something you throw away in a gamble

And Done

Whew! That one finished strong, though once again it started pretty slowly. That seems to be the pattern with this show – every episode starts with a pile of slower exposition and character-checking-in, and then moves to a dramatic finale that pushes the plot forward a bit. I’m honestly not the biggest fan of this format; at least this episode, it felt like the scene with our dynamic trio concealed by dust went on far too long, even if it resulted in some long-overdue character development for Armin. Ten episodes in, I still feel like we’re setting up the pieces for the game to come – establishing the various interactions between the characters, giving each squad member a base level of conviction and a specific strength to contribute, exploring Eren’s power. And I’m not actually against that in any way – I just think the pacing seems slow for scenes that essentially amount to worldbuilding and exposition.

Still, I’m certainly enjoying the show – I like the world they’ve created, I like the idea of a show based on the human side of military strategy, and the direction is pretty endearingly melodramatic. But I can’t help feeling I’m still waiting for it all to kick into high gear.

Fortunately, this shit is 2-cour. My body is ready.

Katanagatari – Episode 3

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Today’s syllabus:

This show so far seems pretty direct in its intentions (a classic drama of identity, legacy, and impermanence cast in a stylized version of an evocative era dipped in Isin’s witty comedy and stabilized by two standout lead characters and a variety of creative self-contained adventures… okay maybe that’s actually not so direct after all), so I’ll probably just be talking about characterization and elements of craft. I’m also pretty much programmed to like something as meta and storytelling-focused as Togame’s focus on her memoirs, so that might get some love too. Either way, I hope it continues to be as good as those first two episodes.

Episode 3

0:38 – Man, these backgrounds are gorgeous. #1 art design.

2:11 – Dem OP lyrics – the beauty of the flower in the wind as it falls. Big red warning light

Pointing that out kinda makes me want to talk about foreshadowing in general, but that topic might require a full essay or something. For now, I’ll just say that after a certain point in media consumption, huge, unbelievable twists generally just cease to exist. To paraphrase Dr. Manhattan , most good stories carry reflections of their whole in every facet – their themes, their tone, the underlying structure, all consistent throughout. This doesn’t mean shows should hammer on the foreshadowing – it means that for many styles of stories, they really shouldn’t have to, because the pieces just fit. I think Madoka might be anime’s most flawless example of this, at least among shows I’ve seen – every element of that show’s structure, characterization, narrative, and themes are all perfectly representative of each other. And in most cases, “foreshadowing” is really just good storytelling – like in a musical arrangement, narrative strains should often be introduced lightly, one note at a time, so their ultimate prominence arrives as a seamless element of the whole.

By the way, I’m not trying to imply all stories should be predictable or anything – I’m saying internal consistency lends storytelling weight. It’d be pretty impossible to see the first couple episodes of Kino’s Journey and extrapolate the rest from there, but that show still has plenty of internal thematic and narrative consistency. For more classically structured shows, the beats are generally more transparent, but the specifics don’t have to be – I don’t know what the stories the rest of this show tells will be, but I can hazard a guess at where the character’s emotional arcs will take them, and what will happen at the end.

3:04 – The size contrast between them is always pretty crazy

6:40 – The crimes of all the restless shrine maidens are crimes against their family or family name, and this denies them inner peace. Ding ding ding

8:42 – “Two of the swords that General Kyuu could not.” Wait, have we heard that name before?

12:47 – “They are most likely tied together by fate.” You don’t say!

16:18 – Our unfaithful samurai shares Togame’s white hair, and as the show just pointed out, hair doesn’t get like that without some serious cause

19:33 – Man, this ninja is camp as fuck. The villains all seem to completely agree with Togame’s thoughts regarding characterization in epic storytelling. “S-so… cool…”

20:02 – Even if they are crazy, these shrine maidens are still adorable

25:42 – “Sympathy tactic, failed.” Sorry lady, Shichika’s pretty much true neutral – his loyalties do not correlate to any standard morality

This “sword-as-strength” stuff is interesting, but I don’t think they’ve fully explored it enough for me to comment yet. But it’s clear that between this episode, last episode, and Shichika’s status as a swordless swordsman, it’s something they’re going to continue working with

26:18 – “It’s because I’m a sword. My body and soul don’t move for anyone but Togame.” Oh. Well. There’ssomewhere they’re going with this – sword as emotional support, swordsman as complete human. It also fits with his absolute neutrality, since a weapon does not care who it strikes, and concerns of morality only lie with the swordsman

28:36 – “I also slew my father.” Well doesn’t that just horrifically complicate everything

36:00 – “Yes, I believed in it. It was my everything.” This identity stuff is interesting, but it pretty much articulates itself. I’m getting put out of a job

36:54 – “Father died, along with every one of his disciples.” Yeeeep. Identity, legacy, impermanence.

38:05 – Her bandit outfit is similar to Togame’s. Her current outfit mirrors the shrine itself

45:35 – I like Togame’s hesitance to control him here. I’m not sure exactly what the message is – whether it’s that she doesn’t want to admit the blood is really on her hands or not, or whether she just doesn’t want to admonish him in general, but it makes for a nice little parallel with the whole fate thing. Neither of them really have control of the situation, and so they’re just playing their roles to whatever end this must go

And Done

Breaking news: this show is still good. The consistency of its themes and their articulations make it actually harder to write about, since I feel like I’m pretty swiftly repeating myself. Tune in next time!

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru – Episode 10

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OreGairu! Finally.

Last week set up the ideal conflict for our There’s-no-way-I’d-fall-in-lovebirds. Concealing her previous run-in (lul) with Hikki pretty much puts the lie to Yuki’s entire philosophy – if she’s not above lying about that, her bluntly honest persona and declarations of moral superiority are dust. The acknowledgment of both how artificial her standards are and her own inability to match them would be quite the blow to her – ostracized by her own lack of social grace and living in the shadow of her sister, she doesn’t have a whole lot else to lean on.

Meanwhile, Hikki’s doing his best to revert back to his callous and well-defended initial self, but his own respect and feelings for Yuki are definitely going to make that difficult. In spite of his own “better” judgment, he values their time together – but forgiving her and accepting her lie would mean breaking with his own angry and self-satisfied view of human interactions, and the power balance between them has always relied on each of them maintaining their own brittle confidence anyway. Forgiving and forgetting would involve a lot of honesty and trust that I don’t think either of them are really ready for.

Fortunately, we have Yui there to break the ice and trample headlong through their silly little psychological games.

This one’s gonna be good.

Episode 10

0:40 – Just sitting in silence at opposite ends of the table. Yeah, seriously, you two are super mature

4:28 – Hikki’s certainly much more negative than he was at the start – he’s taking things much more personally. I also like Yui’s jerk friend still sticking up for her

5:30 – “You’re Haru’s sister, right? Her festival was amazing” Man, this episode is laying on the wound-salt like crazy

6:56 – God, their interactions are just painful to watch. If neither of them actually cared that much, there wouldn’t be any problem – but they’re both so proud, and they really do value each other’s respect, and the power structure of their banter is just way too fragile. FIX THIS OREGAIRU

7:32 – “I’ve decided to suspend the club.” Nooo! NOOOO! This is how it happens! Not with a big cathartic fight – you just let that waiting argument simmer, but you never address it, so you avoid interaction altogether and the relationship just fades away

8:19 – “Working together is a part of growing as well.” Yuki sits, staring downward, hand on her chin. She keeps her thoughts to herself

10:15 – Man, it is just painful to see Yuki’s confidence this damaged. From her perspective, taking this job is great, though – she can avoid coming clean with Hikki by avoiding the situation entirely and recovering her ego elsewhere – by directly competing with her sister’s legacy

14:21 – OH GOD HIT THE BREAKS WHAT IS HARU DOING HERE

14:30 – “She put on a concert. It was amazing!” ”I. Know.”

15:57 – What’s Haru’s game here? Is she really just that cruel?

16:29 – Or is she trying to make it impossible for Yuki to run from the situation?

17:20 – Nope, pretty cruel!

18:40 – “You should rely on others before it gets to that point.” They’re really emphasizing that theme this episode, which makes sense for this conflict, and hopefully is the reason Haru chose to isolate Yuki – she wants to force her to approach people from a position of mutual support and some degree of trust, not just leadership/superiority. And of course that kind of admitting your own fallibility would certainly resolve this Hikki situation quickly, too

It’s certainly not out of character for Hikki to remain on the sideline through all this, but it’s still kind of sad to watch. Not that Yuki would be interested in anything she could construe as pity from him right now

20:33 – Aw man, and just as I say that, he decides he can’t take it any more

And Done

Well, that was painful. They’re setting the tension as high as possible for this last act, and even introduced a character basically just to make life horrible for Yuki. The show itself is being pretty damn merciless here – she was already trapped in a lie regarding her philosophy, and now the festival is making her defend that philosophy in the face of basically everyone around her, with no support from Yui or Hikki. Well, until the end there, when Hikki’s empathy and obviously still-present respect for Yuki made him finally speak out and take the fall for what she really wanted to say. I think this is the longest the show has ever ridden some particular emotional status quo, but it’s not wasting time – it’s building tension towards some (likely horrible) breaking point. I’ve kept saying I want more Yuki development, and we’re certainly getting that – vicious, paradigm-breaking, Shinji Ikari-style Yuki development.

Fortunately, that happens to be my favorite kind.

Hataraku Maou-sama! – Episode 10

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I really liked last episode. I like this show a whole lot in general. Just, you know, throwing that out there.

But…

Well…

Ugh, fuck it. Cue the beach episode.

Episode 10

3:23 – Alright, outsider knowledge or no, this has every hallmark of another one-off adventure. This show has obviously settled in to being fairly episodic with interspersed small arcs, so I’m guessing we’re currently in the low ebb between last episode’s arc conclusion and the final one. For the moment, the show seems to have forgotten about Emi’s run-in with a magical assassin entirely

5:20 – I like how the camera angles for these two phone calls are actually indicative of the specific genre of show each one is representing – the transition from Chiho’s close-ups in her brightly lit room to the shadowed, looming shots used for Suzuno is a joke in itself. The tonal disconnect between the romcom and fantasy drama is played for laughs in plenty of obvious ways, but there are lots of nice little subtle ones too

6:48 – Well, here we go

7:22 – Okay, that Emi face is actually pretty great

9:04 – This actually isn’t so bad, since Maou gives so few shits, and the camera’s not being a creepy asshole. We might yet survive this day

9:33 – Do they keep poisoning Alsiel just to make him even more moe?

9:44 – Lucifer has very good taste 

10:28 – So I guess we’re getting a second haunted house episode? Damnit, Maou!

14:49 – Apparently they wanted to make an episode where the girls looked at lizards, and goddamnit if they were gonna let anyone stop them

17:42 – Holy shit, it looks like something might actually happen!

20:31 – And there it is. Confirmation that Sentucky is our shadowy assassin (and also a some-part-angel), setting up the last act to follow this episode’s breather

And Done

Eh. While that episode wasn’t as bad as I feared it might be fanservice-wise, it was just… well, kinda boring. Virtually nothing of importance happened, the entire male cast was pretty much out of commission for its running time, and there weren’t too many standout jokes, either. Last episode had an actual underlying conflict, progressed the overarching plot/character relationships more, and was more consistently funny – this one definitely fell back into that 6-7 territory of post-arc doldrums. Fortunately, the last moments promise actual momentum in the near future, and this show is always much stronger when it’s building towards something. This was pretty bleh, but it was an unsurprising kind of bleh, and I’m still excited for whatever the last act holds.

Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge – Episode 10

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Welp, didn’t do no homework this week. Looks like I’ll have to rely on the episode’s own merits and a little dash ofinspiration[1]  … well, maybe a generous dollop[2]   of inspiration to fill the airtime. New arc, I’m guessing! The party’s over, sharktooth is dead, and the overarching plot has progressed six or seven centimeters. Meanwhile, Kiri and the Queen have taken it upon themselves to fully earn that PG-13 rating, pulling off a scene that I feel only slightly weird calling one of the strongest moments of the series. In an effect similar to how this show frequently acts as an unintentional parody of its ostensible genres, the show overall kind of represents that wacky contradiction of so many anime – it’s consistently and resolutely stupid and ridiculous, but its core revolves around these moments of well-directed awkward intimacy that come off as inconceivably superior to virtually any other stabs at the topic. Honesty really is the word with this show – it’s dumb and self-indulgent in a way that reveals a mangaka being kind of maybe a little bit unwisely honest with his audience, and all of its best moments revel in the relatable honesty of this show’s One Good Thing, the relationship between Iwai and Kiri.

That said, I don’t think we’re getting any of that this episode. Even if the previous episode hadn’t devoted the last act of its running time to stampeding their relationship forward, we just ended a “significant” plot arc. I get the feeling we’re now reentering exposition territory, and the show will proceed to set up the dominoes for its next arc in the only way it knows how – incredibly ineptly. If there’s anything legitimately praiseworthy awaiting me in the next 23 (okay, for me it’s more like 45) minutes, it will come as an honest and cherished surprise.

Thus, inspiration[3]  .

Episode 10

0:17 – WE KNOW YOU CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF THIS

0:57 – Oh hey, that’s another thing I like about this show – a clearly physically frail girl being self-assured and knowing/articulating what she wants. Female characters showing emotional strength and resolve is something we need more of – but again, in one of the many bizarre ironies of this show, half of its scenes also tend to revolve around Iwai being restrained or almost molested, sooo…

1:17 – Oh man, dem happy snuggles. Aw yeah[4]  

2:03 – This show’s attempts at thrilling mysteries are so adorable. Am I really supposed to care about her hair not growing back, Crime Edge? What could this possibly mean?!?

3:41 – There she is. Our mysterious OP loli. And so the endgame begins

3:51 – And she drops like fifty bloody knives on the floor. Mystery: solved!

4:28 – Did she really have to be naked for that scene? C’mon Crime Edge, Loliball starts in a month. You’re slightly better than this

I do like the disembodied voice getting in that extra little bit of pointless world-building narration about these incredibly fascinating not-quite-Killing-Goods

5:02 – I’m glad the camera was there to assure us her crotch landed okay

5:37 – Wait, is this episode actually gonna be about the adorably awkward aftermath of their newly intensified relationship? Because I could watch that show all day

6:46 – “I should go somewhere where there’s a lot of people.” “Sure, I’ll go shopping for you in a place with lots of people.” I feel like even talking about this plotting makes me actively stupider. But hey, if it gets them back together, fine

7:45 – Oh jeez, a loli with two fangs? Somebody call the OreImo discussion thread

8:03 – And Iwai freaks out about being called onee-chan. I am a fucking psychic

8:09 – And she’s a tsundere ahahahahaha

10:08 – The Zewulfa! Of course! Seriously, speculative fiction writers? Don’t do this. Every time you introduce a fantastical element into your story, there better be a good goddamn reason for it. If you’re writing about why the wielders of Segurthorgor must harness the Light of Hibbledibibbledi to prevent Zimpop from summoning the Belshugga, nobody is going to give a shit

10:36 – That was the least masculine sprint I think I have ever seen. Seriously, rewind to 10:32 or so and let Kiri’s limp-wristed jitter-walk play. Poetry

10:37 – Yet again, Iwai’s crotch survives the landing

12:03 – Goddamn, see? The show spends five freaking minutes establishing a routine loli opponent, and then tosses off fifteen seconds of Kiri endearingly struggling to internalize the relationship lessons of the class trip. What is with this balance

12:11 – What is up with Kiri’s pants? Are they like, jeans with leg warmers on the outside?

12:45 – I also agree that the backflipping knife-throwing loli assassin is more important than your girlfriend’s hair at the moment!

14:04 – “Her small body and soft skin… there’s no doubt that she’s still a child.” Kiri please, I’m already hot and bothered as it is

14:51 – I’m fairly certain the Naruto run doesn’t actually make you go faster, loli Kirino

15:47 – “Unlike your ridiculous scissors, my Killings Goods were made-to-order.” That’s a pretty neat trick! Oh wait, I just thought of something… you know what would make for a pretty good fabricated Killing Goods? A fucking gun

16:23 – This fight is intensely silly and also surprisingly well-choreographed

16:45 – Wait, hold the fuck up, since when can Kiri do crazy backflips and shit?

16:56 – I’d watch it[5]  

18:37 – Dat plot thickening. So, in a normal show where I was actually invested in the narrative proceedings, this father stuff would be a pretty solid call on the writer’s part. Dramatic developments can’t just be generically dramatic, they have to reflect on and illuminate the characters involved, and dredging up dark family secrets is a fairly cheap but routinely effective way of scoring on that count

Of course, this show isn’t actually about families, it’s about awkward and misunderstood sexuality. So either this father-daughter stuff is about to get super weird, or else the writer just read in a book somewhere that this is how actual writers tell stories, and goddamnit if he’s gonna be put down by those hoity-toity writers with their coherent storytelling and their understanding of thematic structure

18:57 – “I really wanted to remain cool in your eyes.” This, on the other hand, is perhaps the first time an episode of this show has articulated and stayed true to a single thematic idea for a whole 20 minutes. Their shedding of the expectations they put on themselves to artificially be of worth to each other (her with the hair, him with his displays of bravado) is a great idea, and this episode’s insistence on making a coherent point of that relationship shift is, well, very surprising. Sorry, Crime Edge

20:35 – Wait, so the witch’s name is actually just Witchy? Goddamnit Crime Edge, I just spent like two whole paragraphs respectfully analyzing you and then you go and pull some shit like this

20:59 – But enough about murder. Puppies!

And Done

Man, Lolino is pissed.

So yeah, signs point to this resolving with Lolino learning to respect bonds in general and expand her definition of family, but who gives a shit about any of that? This episode had a knife-flinging loli assassin doing the dance of death with a suddenly incredibly limber Kiri, along with mutual relationship troubles regarding Iwai and Kiri’s inability to satisfy their lovers, insofar as those abilities correlate to “ability to grow hair super good” and “ability to murder people with barber’s shears.” Structurally, it pretty much did everything I expected, and set up our last few episodes of sheer insanity fairly solidly – but I certainly wasn’t bored! At this point, if worst comes to worst they could just murder a character every episode and skid into an at least reasonably entertaining conclusion – it certainly wouldn’t betray my expectations or anything. Although, trimming the cast like that might cut into the storytelling potential, even if the shear audacity of the decision results in some immediate buzz.

I’m sorry. I’ll see myself out.

Seriously though, I do think I’ve earned some kind of severance package.

Sorry, sorry.

Sorry.