Tag Archives: Anime

Galaxy Express 999 – Episode 10

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I am eager to return to the journey of Tetsuro and Maetel, as we explore a fresh episode of the fantastical Galaxy Express. Our last episode saw the pair touching down on the planet Trader, and for once enjoying the generous amenities of a modern city as they prepared for the next leg of their journey. But no glimmering facade comes without its ominous underbelly, and in Trader, the vast gulf between the haves and have-nots is expressed on every street corner, as desperate travelers beg for charity from anyone who might answer.

The threat of starvation has a way of clarifying our relationship with others, demonstrating how the civility of society is essentially another form of imprisonment, a culturally conditioned expectation that we will suffer in silence rather than disrupt the mirage that is capitalism. True scarcity pierces the veil, forcing us to act in desperate, ugly ways in order to survive, and through this desperation reveal that forms of classism or servitude based on financial relations are in truth no more civilized than the gun and the lash. It is a very convenient thing to have your inhumanity enshrined as the culturally accepted mode of exploitation, while the cries of those you’ve impoverished are at best framed as “undignified,” and likely as not criminalized altogether. All we can hope for in such desperate times is that the fire of compassion not be snuffed out by pragmatism – and in this woman he has allied with, whose poverty and kindness remind him so much of his mother, Tetsuro may have discovered another keeper of the flame. Let us return to Galaxy Express 999!

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The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, REALLY Love You – Episode 13

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we are privileged to be checking back in with a family we all know and love, a family which only seems to grow stronger and more preposterous with every passing episode. That’s right, we’re returning to the adventures of Rentaro and his soon-to-be one hundred girlfriends, their ranks just recently bolstered by the addition of initial girlfriend Hakari’s mother Hahari.

With Rentaro now dating a fellow student and her mom at the same time, there is effectively no known boundary for the coming absurdity. Of course, even more preposterous than 100 Girlfriends’ premise is the fact that it actually, consistently demonstrates the fundamentals of mutually loving relationships, demonstrating more clarity of affection and constancy of consideration than many traditional romances. As I’ve said before, 100 Girlfriends’ secret weapon is that Rentaro himself is utterly charming; far from the nebbish creeper harems often set as audience surrogate, Rentaro is actually easy to fall in love with, and consistently proves himself a paragon of romantic gallantry. With the family secure and the future bright, let’s return to 100 Girlfriends!

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Rock is a Lady’s Modesty – Episode 1

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re barreling into a brand new production, as we continue to enjoy the fruits of this delightfully rock band-rich era of animation. This time we’re checking out the currently ongoing Rock is a Lady’s Modesty, a show whose title alone promises a culture clash between reserved, high-class elegance and raucous, audaciously expressive rock performance, as our heroine works to juggle her familial expectations and personal passions. So basically like The Ramones finding each other in a Class S drama or something? I don’t know, but I’m eager to find out.

As for our production team, director Shinya Watada has been a reliable hand at Sunrise for many years now, handling episodic directorial duties on major productions like the Gundam Build Fighters and Love Live! franchises. Both of those franchises are known specifically for the dynamism of their direction, and how well they make camera positioning an active part of the drama and comedy (that Kotori corner face is really just the tip of the iceberg), so I’m expecting good things from him and equally seasoned series composer Shogo Yasukawa. Interestingly, art director Hirofumi Sakagami is actually better known for background art than anything involving animation, which I suppose makes sense given the performance sequences will be motion-captured 3DCG based on actual performances by the OP group BAND-MAID. Watada’s own words demonstrate a clear appreciation for the themes of both rock band anime generally and this production’s particular contrast of values, so I’m feeling pretty darn confident about our prospects here. Let’s get to the show!

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Yaiba: Samurai Legend – Episode 2

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to return to the ongoing Yaiba: Samurai Legend, whose first episode offered a generous buffet of upbeat shonen staples and astonishing Kanada-style action. Shipped from his jungle home to Japan in a packing crate, Yaiba swiftly established himself as a gremlin to be reckoned with, offering a refreshingly guileless Goku-adjacent energy that was neatly complimented by his new housemate Sayaka. All the while, his journey was brightened and elevated by this production’s simultaneously nostalgic and cutting-edge art design, carrying the pleasures of both Kanada’s classic space action and Shonen Jump’s ‘80s energy into the twenty-first century.

Our core team of director Takahiro Hasui and animation director Yoshimichi Kameda clearly know exactly what they’re doing. Given his tenure as Mob Psycho 100’s character designer, Kameda’s distinct approach to this production demonstrates he is an artist capable of adapting his own techniques to the aesthetic and tone of his material, not just bringing original creator Gosho Aoyama’s designs to life, but realizing them through animation techniques that harken back to the era of their initial creation. Through this approach, Yaiba represents a reclamation of treasured animation techniques much like Wit’s prior Ranking of Kings, embracing the tools of the digital era while separating itself from their assumed aesthetic compliments. The more classic anime I watch, the more vivid techniques and embellishments I see that have tragically fallen by the wayside; through works like Yaiba, I am delighted to see these techniques returned to life, ready to dazzle and hopefully inspire a new generation of animators. Let’s get to it!

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Monogatari Off/Monster Season – Episode 5

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re diving back into the rambling escapades of Monogatari’s Off Season, as Nadeko continues her quest to pull herself back together. Having created four doppelgangers to assist with her manga practice, our would-be artist is now chasing them halfway across town, hoping to reseal them in ink before they destroy her life entirely. So far she’s recaptured both Flirty and Wrath Nadeko, but the unlikely alliance of Meek and God Nadeko promises to be the most trouble by far.

Alongside physically besting these Nadekos, this journey is of course also a psychological gauntlet. Confronted by these prior identities who are doing their best to live their own lives, can Nadeko still say her pursuit of manga is the most meaningful, “authentic” path she could pursue? And what’s more, can she do that while acknowledging that these reflections are all still a part of her – her eagerness to please, her need to be loved, her resentment at being typecast, her desire for control and revenge? It’s been hard for even Monogatari’s most self-aware characters to acknowledge their uncharitable instincts, but if Nadeko is to move forward with confidence, she must do so while embracing the fullness of her emotions, rather than simply adopting the clothes and mannerisms she finds suitable to her latest persona. She must accept her truth, embarrassing as it may be – after all, didn’t Kaiki say that creating art is inherently embarrassing?

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The Fire Hunter – Episode 1

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to set out on a new journey, as we explore the first episode of the recent production The Fire Hunter. This show was announced with much fanfare several years ago, owing both to its distinct source material and eminently noteworthy key staff. First off, the series is based on a collection of traditional fantasy novels by Rieko Hinata, rather than light novels, which is perhaps the single most reliable delineator of narrative quality in animation. That means that both its world and characters will likely be constructed by a practiced hand; a place people could actually live in, populated by characters who presumably speak like humans rather than favored archetypes.

Secondly, the show marks another return to animation by the improbable Vladlove duo of Junji Nishimura and Mamoru Oshii. Vladlove aside (it’s clear the pair were feeling some nostalgia for their Ranma days), both Nishimura and Oshii are supremely capable artists; Nishimura’s Simoun is one of the great unsung masterpieces of animation, and Oshii presumably needs no introduction. Between Angel’s Egg, Patlabor, Ghost in the Shell, and his many other projects, Oshii has left a singular mark on animation, and stands alongside such titans as Satoshi Kon and Masaaki Yuasa as one of the great auteurs of the medium. With the two of them handling direction and writing, we could not be in safer hands, and I’m eager to learn what about this story drew them back to the medium. Let’s get to it!

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Scum’s Wish – Episode 11

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re checking in with what might well be the most gleefully self-destructive cast of characters I’ve critiqued in my animation tenure, a group who could literally trip over happiness and fulfillment and emerge only with scuffed knees and fresh demons. That’s right, it’s time for Scum’s fucking Wish, as our misguided collection of high schoolers and high school-brained teachers bash against each other in some grotesque, self-harming approximation of intimacy.

When last we left off, Scum’s Wish had dedicated a full episode to articulating Akane’s psychology, and her feelings towards both Kanai and Mugi. Brief summary: she sucks, being simultaneously empty and self-absorbed, and combining Hana’s desperate need for affection with a power-hungry cruel streak all her own. Like many of Scum’s Wish’s characters, she is more of an exaggerated articulation of one particular feeling than a coherent psychological profile, a melodramatic irritant who, if you opened up her skull and looked inside for the real story, you would discover is literally defined as “melodramatic irritant.” Akane is less of a person than a slow-moving natural disaster, and at this point I can only hope Hana is strong enough to pull at least one of her delusional suitors out of her orbit. Let’s get to the bloodshed!

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BanG Dream! Ave Mujica – Episode 4

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Hello folks, and welcome the heck back to Wrong Every Time. Today it’s looking to be another day, another dissociative episode as we return to BanG Dream! Ave Mujica, with Mutsumi clearly on the verge of some kind of psychotic break. Having been exploited and abandoned by her parents, her former bandmates, and now apparently Sakiko herself, Mutsumi has decided there is only one person she can rely on: her alter ego Mortis, the implacable guitarist of Ave Mujica. Mutsumi is not strong enough to carry the weight of her own pain and Sakiko’s as well, but Mortis is free from such responsibilities, a grim realization of the facile “liberation” Sakiko seeks through this group.

It’s been quite a journey for the girl who was initially defined as “quiet, likes cucumbers,” but I suppose that’s of a piece with Ave Mujica’s general dramatic maximalism. What’s becoming increasingly apparent is that Mutsumi’s complaint of “my sound was drowned out within a band” applies to more than just her; frankly, it seems like not one member of Ave Mujica is seeking the same thing as any other, save for the amusing compatibility of the equally professionally-minded Nyamu and Umiri. So if the only members getting what they want are the ones who are here for a paycheck, and the players who actually share Sakiko’s desire for a community are only suffering more, who exactly is benefitting from this group? For Sakiko, breaking up the band might not just be a tragic inevitability – it might be the only way anyone who cares about her can escape her toxic orbit.

But for now, the show must go on. Take it away, Mortis!

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Trigun Stampede – Episode 6

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I thought we’d journey back to No Man’s Land, and see how things are faring in Trigun Stampede. Our last episode offered a ruthless demonstration of life’s brutality here in this desolate place, as we were introduced to a young boy named Rollo suffering from a debilitating illness, and that same boy as a man who had been monstrously transformed by Knives and his associates. Vash’s promise to this boy was proven hollow; while he could do nothing but offer tears and apologies, it fell to Wolfwood to provide Rollo’s last rites.

The episode offered a tidy summation of Vash’s ambiguous role here in No Man’s Land. His motives are pure; he simply wants to help people where he can, and refuses to raise a hand in anger. He is understandably afraid of his own god-like power, and wishes at all costs to avoid becoming a self-assigned arbiter like Knives, the one who unilaterally chooses who lives and who dies.

However, in a world as harsh as No Man’s Land, simple kindness is often not enough to ensure a positive outcome. Saving Rollo would have required dismantling the society that chose to sacrifice him – similarly, saving many others could have been achieved simply by executing one or another murder-happy bandit, an act of arbitration that most would agree is worth the cost. Equipped with infinite power yet unwilling to use it for even the most obviously righteous reasons, it’s understandable that someone like Wolfwood would call Vash a hypocrite; even if pacifism is a noble pursuit, it is a philosophy unequipped to handle the cutthroat moral calculus of life on the barren frontier.

What good is a superman who never interferes, who offers moral support or stands in judgment, but will not lift a hand to change the world? I imagine these questions are weighing on Vash as well as we return to Trigun Stampede!

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Spring 2025 – Week 7 in Review

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Hello folks, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. This week I’m out and about with my mother and sisters, going on our first family trip since well before the COVID lockdown. It’s refreshing to be out of my cozy den for once, though with my Playstation back at the apartment, I am now grappling with the agonizing question of whether I pick up Blue Prince on Steam just so I can keep shuffling through manor layouts. The game’s just too damn addictive! I’ve basically broken the economy through exploitation of experiments, I’m just one fortunate run away from defeating the chess puzzle, and my housemate is surely getting further ahead of me with every misspent hour. Still, I’m at least getting some solid reading done (just finished Michael Dylan Foster’s informative yokai index, and am now starting on Titus Groan), and my movie review buffer means there will be no disruptions in service regarding our weekly breakdowns. So let’s get right on that then, and charge through some fresh films!

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