86 – Episode 4

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to return to 86, where Lena has at last received the violent comeuppance she’s been approaching all season. After three episodes of ingratiating herself with the 86, and attempting to prove she is fundamentally unlike her privileged compatriots, the death of Kirschblute made the distance between her and her subordinates undeniably clear.

The 86 don’t need her paternalistic sympathy. Does she want a medal just for acknowledging them as human? Regardless of her lofty rhetoric, Lena still enjoys the full safety of her position, guarded even from political sanction by her powerful friends. And as her subordinates bitterly point out, though Lena pats herself on the back for her kindness, she hasn’t even learned their real names. She is a tourist in their world, her sympathy more a vehicle for her own satisfaction than genuine political change.

So then, the question becomes: what does Lena do when confronted with the truth? Will she retreat into the privilege of her position, and give up on connecting with the 86? That wouldn’t make for a particularly satisfying narrative, so I’m guessing we’re going the other route: Lena must prove she is a genuine political ally, and put her own life on the line the way her subordinates are perpetually forced to. Either way, the reckoning has arrived, and I’m eager to see how Lena faces it!

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Oregairu S3 – Episode 6

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Alright Hachiman, what’s the plan? You’ve wormed your way back into the prom preparations, but how are you actually going to triumph over the full power of Yukino’s mother? You’ve largely dealt with children or peers in the past, using your understanding of adolescent psychology to manipulate the actions of those around you. That’s clearly not going to work on an adult woman with institutional power, who knows exactly what she wants, and has no obligation to entertain the whims of teenagers.

His one real piece of leverage, which he was quick to point out last episode, is that the PTO wants the student body to voluntarily abandon their plans. If he can rally the students to his side, he could possibly create a conflict of a scale that supersedes Yukimom’s authority. If he can turn this conflict into a liability for her reputation, he might just win out.

Of course, even if he does that, it’ll still be an embrace of the old, limited methods he’s always employed. In fact, as of this moment, it feels like all three of our heroes are backsliding. Hachiman’s once more acting as a lone avenger, Yukino is refusing to relinquish her pride, and Yui is sacrificing her own happiness for the sake of her friends. It’s clear they’re all trying to reach a certain level of independence as high school ends, but it was their mutual friendship that made them strong, and without it, they’re relying on the same old habits as before. Can they successfully stand apart while still embodying the honesty, empathy, and humility they’ve learned together? Let’s find out!

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Adachi and Shimamura – Episode 10

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Hello everyone, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to dive back into Adachi and Shimamura, as our beleaguered heroines continue to inch closer to each other. Valentine’s Day turned out to be an unmitigated success, with Shimamura’s feelings for Adachi coming across even more clearly in contrast. After a day of nostalgia and melancholy spent with her old friend Tarumi, retracing the same steps with Adachi fostered some very different feelings. Rather than introducing the prospect of a love rival, Tarumi ultimately ended up reaffirming how Adachi is genuinely special to Shimamura.

Of course, that was just one of last episode’s many rewards. The Tarumi meetup also offered an opportunity for Shimamura to reflect on her shifting identity, as she lamented the pain of reaching out to her prior, “incomplete” self. The person Tarumi sought was a stranger even to Shimamura – but ultimately, Shimamura decided that the friction of attempting to restore these once-sundered bonds was worth it. Where Shimamura would have once discarded both Tarumi and Adachi when they became an emotional burden, she is now making a genuine effort, and working to maintain the relationships that are important to her. That in turn reflects the fact that she cares now – these bonds providing genuine comfort, partially dispelling the grey malaise that has characterized her unchanging days. Shimamura has made tremendous progress, and I’m eager to see how her dynamic with Adachi changes now that she actually wants things again. Let’s find out!

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Summer 2021 – Week 11 in Review

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. With One Piece finally in the rear view, the floodgates were opened this week, as we replaced hours of dedicated One Piece time with even more feature films. I actually watched even more films than I had time to write about this week, but don’t worry! All the excess Content will surely pop up in next week’s article. In the meantime, this was a week of recent highlights, as we checked out two of 2021’s top films, as well as a magnificent work from 2020.

It’s difficult to express how exciting it is to feel my art critique muscles being stressed and rebuilt this rigorously; with every film we screen, I feel just a sliver of added context, and that much more attunement with the infinite tapestry of artistic form and influence. There’s just so much to see, so much I don’t know, and grappling with that is both exhilarating and kinda terrifying. The world of storytelling is vaster than any person could chart, but as long as I know more today than I did yesterday, I think I’m on the right track. But enough starry-eyed rambling, let’s break down some films!

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Scum’s Wish – Episode 1

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be embarking on a brand new journey, as we check out the first episode of the 2017 drama Scum’s Wish. I recall a fair degree of buzz regarding the Scum’s Wish manga, with the story making waves for its willingness to engage with the emotional and physical messiness of teenage sexuality. In a field that frequently sanitizes relationships to the point where a chaste kiss is the ultimate expression of sexual fervor, Scum’s Wish acknowledges that teens are horny, and often express that horniness in self-destructive ways.

As for the production, we’ve got Masaomi Andou serving as director, whose projects all tend to feature a few common signatures. The most obvious indicator that you’re in an Andou production is the proliferation of screen-in-screen shots, where a character reaction, physical action, or some other variable is illustrated through smaller boxes layered on top of the original image. This technique tends to create a distinct sense of flow in his works, as well as the sense of a “moving comic” that is a bit closer to manga than film. Andou balances this visual signature with an otherwise restrained, almost conservative approach to direction, generally favoring clear, wide shots over angled or aggressive cinematography. Given this is a manga adaptation, I assume that’ll all translate to a rigorously manga-loyal adaptation, with his flourishes almost recreating the paneling of the source material.

Alright, I think that covers everything I know about this property and production. Let’s get to it!

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Pokemon Sun and Moon – Episode 46

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re going to be taking it easy for a little while, by returning to the proudly low-stakes drama of Pokemon Sun and Moon. In spite of Lusamine’s best efforts to introduce some genuine narrative momentum to this production, last episode mostly just involved Starcloud teleporting the crew to a bevy of island hot spots (some more literal than others), along with the requisite dollop of Team Rocket trying hard and failing spectacularly. Ash promised to raise this little eldritch beast, but it’s clear that not even Starcloud can control Starcloud’s powers, and thus the potential for disaster remains high.

That’s all fine by me! I’m down for adventure and also down for relaxation, so whichever way the wind blows, I’ll be sure to adjust my beach chair and continue enjoying the Alolan summer. Good company can make any activity a treat, and Sun and Moon’s crew is about the best company we could hope for. Let’s all lean back and enjoy another lazy afternoon beneath the Alolan sun!

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Toradora! – Episode 8

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Having survived Toradora!’s darkest hour, we arrive at an episode that announces itself with one of the franchise’s greatest assets: Minori Kushieda, and her inexhaustible inventory of weird noises.

Minorin’s Whole Deal is one of the most compelling ways Toradora! pushes back against anime romance convention. For as complex as they are, Taiga and Ami still resemble recognizable archetypes – in contrast, Minori is both weird and intelligent in ways that aren’t often recognized in anime, much less framed in the context of the “perfect romantic ideal.” Minori is always too unabashedly herself to fade into her narrative role, always doing things that push others out of their comfort zones, and steering the narrative when you might expect her to be stepping aside. As we’ve discussed, her play-acting is ultimately its own kind of defensiveness, but her behavior is unique in a way that makes her feel far more alive and distinctive than many romantic heroines.

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Summer 2021 – Week 10 in Review

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Buckle up everyone, we have got a pile of properties to get through and not much time to do it. This was a productive week in film-watching for me, though my selections were admittedly a little scattershot, and perhaps more beholden to the Netflix algorithm than usual. We also continued to barge through She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, taking down seasons two and three, and polishing off the rest of One Piece while we were at it. Yes yes, end of an era and all that, but I’m trying not to feel too broken up about it – after all, post-Oden Wano is still a damn good weekly anime, leaving me something to look forward to on the weekends. That aside, we’ve got a pile of films to sort through, so let’s not waste any more time, and dive into the Week in Review!

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Spirit Circle: A Comfortable Boredom

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“It’s hard for me to hate you,” Touko admits in Spirit Circle’s fifth volume. This isn’t a happy revelation. It’s spoken with bitterness, more of an accusation than an apology. And it’s easy to see why: hating Fuuta makes everything easier for Touko.

With Fuuta serving as the target of her rage, all of the injustices that have befallen Touko make a certain kind of sense. In our chaotic and frequently tragic world, it can be comforting to believe all of your problems are a result of some specific antagonist, some malevolent force that is specifically denying you the happiness you deserve. The idea of getting revenge for a grudge inherently implies some faith or hope in the order of things. When you were wronged, that was a deviation from how things are “supposed” to go, and you must “set things right” by punishing the person who caused this deviation. We cling to villains because the truth is much scarier – that life is simply chaotic without purpose, and bad things often happen to good people.

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ODDTAXI – Episode 8

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Tensions are rising across ODDTAXI as the Halloween celebrations continue. Out in the streets, Taichi is racing through the crowd with his prize: fresh footage of Dobu up to his usual tricks. Of course, this very act of violence was predicated by Taichi’s own witch hunt, when he blamed Dobu for a shooting he had no involvement in. But to the internet, invented and authentic monsters are equally worthy of condemnation – and if social media’s ire clings to you long enough, you’re sure to create your own crucifixion-worthy rap sheet.

Of all possible holidays, Halloween has to be the perfect choice for ODDTAXI. In many ways, the holiday echoes the form and appeal of online engagement. We all go out into a fabricated, liminal space between our mundane real-world expectations, a world born of our collective desires. In this place, we wear the masks of strangers, using anonymity to protect ourselves from shame or consequences as we embrace strange new selves. And yet, even as our costumes protect us, we seek out intimacy, community, and joy – all the hallmarks of earnest connection, somehow more reachable behind a stranger’s face.

In this place we can dance and run wild, uninhibited and free, at least until the morning comes. We can bellow out our fears in a full voice, or lay claim to desires we could never speak aloud, held safe from consequence by our garish disguises. We can even claim community through these vestments, dressing in the trappings of our gods and idols, and thereby signaling our unity of passion and purpose. Halloween provides an evening of inauthentic presentation and authentic passion, a dreamscape where your fantasies can be realized – so long as you do not lose yourself entirely, and remember to awaken in your own skin.

ODDTAXI is a show for those who regret that waking, as well as those who only see tragedy in our vigorously mediated connections. In the face of a world that demands perpetual performance, it lingers on the moments between viral posts, and the quiet desperation of seeking intimacy through platforms designed for commerce and competition. The intoxication of Halloween revelry is a heady but fleeting high, and for ODDTAXI’s heroes, this night promises more terror than release. With the festivities already in full swing, let’s return to the streets.

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