The Demon Girl Next Door S2 – Episode 7

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to dive back into The Demon Girl Next Door, which most recently surprised me with what felt very much like a mid-season season finale. Pretty much all of our immediate narrative concerns were addressed and to some extent resolved by our last episode, whether we’re speaking in terms of the characters’ overt task or their emotional trajectory.

As far as the “save Sakura” quest goes, Sakura Chiyoda has been discovered nestled safely in Shamiko’s heart, serving as her magical protector until Shamiko is strong enough to stand on her own. And Shamiko’s private vow to make Momo smile has reaped stunning rewards as well: not only has Momo earned that treasured genuine smile, but it was even in the context of Momo pledging that “make Shamiko happy” is her new goal to strive for, just hours after Momo embraced the darkness to save Shamiko from bad dreams.

Such definitive conclusions would generally mark the end of a series, which makes me all the more intrigued about what comes next. How will Momo act now that she’s free from the stress of saving Sakura, and will all these relational milestones crossed help Shamiko realize that she and Momo are already dating? Let’s find out!

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Dear Brother – Episode 3

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to dive back into Dezaki’s majestic Dear Brother, whose last episode presented us with a dizzying array of narrative developments and relational revelations. We swiftly learned the identity of Nanako’s alleged brother, but that was only the tip of the iceberg. In the leadup to the reveal of Nanako’s candidacy, we also saw clear battle lines drawn between the school’s three objects of adoration, as well as plenty more evidence that Shinobu will eventually burn this whole place down.

In the midst of all these passionate, larger-than-life personalities, my most urgent question is how exactly Nanako will make herself stand out. Unlike many high school heroines, there’s little that’s remarkable about her, and she’s spent the first two episodes being guided by others rather than establishing her own path. Her persistent use of Cinderella imagery to describe her school life makes it clear that she can’t quite see her Seiran experiences as real, so I imagine it’ll take a disruption of her current fairy tale framing to bring her down to earth. Regardless, I’m certain Dezaki will realize her experiences with decadent visual splendor, and eager to see how Ikeda’s tangled narrative proceeds. Let’s get to it!

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Winter 2023 – Week 9 in Review

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Hey folks, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. I hope you’re all staying warm through these interminable winter days, and am happy to report I’ve got a sturdy pile of film reflections ready for your perusal. I’ve also been continuing my journey through anime of the past; after subjecting my housemates to eighty episodes of Tomino, I figured it was time to call for suggestions from the crowd, and thus Outlaw Star served as our latest anime endeavor. I last saw Outlaw Star in episodic fragments after school on Toonami, so it was quite a blast of nostalgia to return to its crew, and even more satisfying to realize Outlaw Star is just a damn good time. I’ll probably rustle up some composed thoughts on the show soon, but for now, let’s run through a fresh selection of feature films!

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Spy x Family – Episode 15

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we return to Spy x Family in a moment of crisis, as Loid faces off with a bomb-laden dog in a dark alley! Is this the end for Loid, or perhaps just for this poor pooch? How will we resolve this encroaching calamity!?

Well, I’m guessing Spy x Family isn’t the sort of story to either shoot or explode a dog, so I imagine we’re in for some quick thinking and dazzling acrobatics from our resident Bondman. Either way, I’m eager to reach the climax of this arc, which has so far served as the fulfillment of one of Spy x Family’s most alluring promises: the entire family in battle array, employing their powers in unison to accomplish some grand objective. Anya’s certainly settling into this mode well; the acquisition of a big floofy dog has vastly enhanced her reconnaissance abilities, not only through its apparent precognitive powers, but perhaps more importantly through its ability to move much faster than Anya’s tiny little legs. Seeing the whole family in action has been a delight, and I’m eager to see how we turn this attempted bombing into some improbable bonding exercise. Let’s get to it!

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The Legend of Vox Machina S2 – Episode 2

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to continue exploring the second season of Vox Machina, as our intrepid warriors head to Vasselheim in search of new allies. Will they find the reinforcements they seek, and can any force of mere warriors hope to stand up to the might of the Chroma Conclave!? If the laws of satisfying DnD experiences are to be obeyed, then “yes, obviously,” but I’m grateful to Mercer for setting up such a seemingly implacable foe.

Frankly, this season’s dramatic opening sequence is making me feel a little regretful about not destroying my own campaign’s main city, and merely subjecting it to an attack that saw its rulers killed and towers toppled. If my players are going to believe the whole world is in peril, I should at least be willing to destroy one city to prove it, right? But that’s just the sort of insight I love from this show, as it and I grapple with the perpetual negotiations of player satisfaction versus dramatic necessity, agency versus narrative focus, and all the other unresolvable contradictions that make DnD so interesting, so ambiguous and alive. Let’s sally forth to Vasselheim, as we continue to explore The Legend of Vox Machina!

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Bocchi the Rock! – Episode 3

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Hello folks, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to dive back into the perpetual anxiety nightmare that is Life As A Bocchi, and see how our girl fares in the wake of her first day at work. Manning the concession stand at Starry was indeed a harrowing experience, but it was clear that Bocchi was making progress by the end, and equally clear that Nijika has been a good influence on her. From that first crossing of the playground fence to her admission that “I’m having a better time because you’re here,” Nijika has consistently and compassionately drawn Bocchi towards comfortable socialization and the rich high school life she’s always dreamed of.

Granted, making an effort for one work shift is a little different from committing to a customer-facing job permanently, but the formalized, simplified interactions of the concession stand might actually serve as socialization training wheels for Bocchi, getting her comfortable talking to people within the confines of easy questions with easy answers. Regardless, I’m sure this preposterously ambitious team will animate her trials with flair to spare, so let’s see what’s cooking with Bocchi!

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Winter 2023 – Week 8 in Review

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. It’s been a highly productive week on my end, as I surged through the last act of Space Runaway Ideon, and topped off the series with a viewing of its apocalyptic concluding film Be Invoked. That screening served as a fine trail marker for a project that I’d initially assigned myself as research: filling out my understanding of Tomino’s style and the classics of the ‘70s and ‘80s, starting with the original Mobile Suit Gundam. Of course, as anyone who’s actually seen the original Gundam knows, the show is actually thrilling even for modern audiences, and hasn’t really aged poorly in any way beyond the mores and production constraints of its time. And the ways it goes beyond most modern anime, both in its ambition and its maturity, make it no surprise that Gundam has become such an enduring franchise. Anyway, I’ve clearly got Opinions on these shows, so let’s get to it!

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Spirit Circle: Why Do We Live?

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Why do we live, and what do we live for? There is no score sheet to play towards in human existence, though some might frame wealth, power, or some other metric as their own measure of success. But can a human life be measured in terms of success or failure? Is failing to seize opportunity failing at life itself, or are such disappointments themselves intrinsic to the experience? Is a life born into suffering worth any less than a life born into splendor, or is suffering somehow meaningful as well? Maybe seeking meaning in life is itself a trap, one designed to rob us of enjoying what is in favor of pining for what might be. If our only certainty is change, perhaps our most vital skill is mutability, and thus “why do we live” demands an answer as flexible as life itself.

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Star Driver – Episode 16

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Hello and welcome all back to Wrong Every Time. Today we return to Southern Cross Isle in a moment of crisis, with Mizuno having just discovered the true, inarguable limits of her gilded cage. After a lifetime of considering this island her sanctuary, the return of her despised mother made it suddenly intolerable. Seeking escape by ferry, she soon realized that shrine maidens aren’t simply forbidden from leaving the island, they physically cannot escape it. Every attempt to escape its grasp sent her tumbling back to the prior morning, with only increasing cracks in this island’s supernatural firmament to show for it.

Alongside its clear narrative import, all the visual signifiers of that last episode further emphasized that we’ve reached the conclusion of Mizuno’s comfortable fantasy. All of the sequences that initially introduced her (the ferry passing, the bird nest) were here reframed as conclusions, new friends and baby birds replaced by Mizuno’s mother and an empty nest. I’m feeling for Mizuno, but also eager to see how all these revelations change her relationships with the rest of the cast – after all, as Kanako and Benio have demonstrated, it is only once these students shed their false, expectation-borne shells that they can express their true selves. Let’s see what chaos awaits as we return to Star Driver!

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Dear Brother – Episode 2

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m delighted to announce we’re returning to Dear Brother, and continuing to explore its fusion of Ikeda’s propulsive storytelling and Dezaki’s expressive direction. I’ve seen scattered fragments of Dezaki’s work before (his Cobra film, his Ganso Tensai Bakabon episodes), but I was still not prepared for the visual imagination elevating every scene of that premiere, and framing the drama of Seiran Academy at precisely the fever pitch Nanako was experiencing it. In Dezaki’s hands, anime embraces the tools of both theater and traditional painting; rather than attempting to mediate the distance between art and audience via an illusion of realism, Dezaki embraces formal artifice to create something that is both visually striking and emotionally authentic.

Also, Ikeda’s story! I was curious to learn how a boarding school would provide the necessary flint and tinder to spark a proper melodrama, and that premiere felt like a masterclass in efficiently establishing conflict and intrigue. Between Nanako’s relationship with this mysterious brother, the approaching chaos of the sorority proving, and the larger-than-life auras of Seiran’s three champions, it seems Seiran is stuffed to bursting with conflicts and dark histories just waiting to be revealed. I’m eager to see how these mysteries unfold, so let’s quit with the rambling and dive back into the show!

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