Tag Archives: Anime

Spring 2017 – Week 8 in Review

Posted on by

The anime… is good. Really, if anything, I can only complain that this season’s incredibly consistent quality has made it a whole lot harder to come up with reasonable topics for these intro paragraphs. I’ve been leaning on the meta well a bit too heavily, but given I’ve dropped everything that ever caused me any pain whatsoever, it’s just hard to stay even-handed here. Sakura Quest has shrugged off its early messiness, My Hero Academia is slam dunking its brilliant source material, and The Eccentric Family 2 likely had its best episode yet. I try to stay impartial, but folks, it might be time to recommend you try Anime. I’ve heard it’s pretty okay.

Alright, I think that’s around my required word count. Now let’s both of us escape this preamble and RUN THIS WEEK DOWN!

Continue reading →

ef – A Tale of Memories – Episode 6

Posted on by

And we’re back with more ef! I’m actually really enjoying this show at this point – it’s far from perfect, but it’s exactly the kind of messy I like. Chihiro and Renji’s narrative is legitimately great, and the other narratives continue to swing for the fences, even if they sometimes end up in the cliche romcom nonsense infield. The show’s visual style matches its narrative ambitions – consistently throwing everything against the wall, succeeding at least as often as it fails. Messy shows that try really hard are pretty great. Let’s see what this episode brings!

Continue reading →

The Eccentric Family 2 – Episode 8

Posted on by

This was a terrific episode of The Eccentric Family, but I’ve already written basically every word I could think of to describe it, so just head on over to that review there. Writing about this show may kill me eventually, but I think that’d be a pretty okay death.

You can check out my full megareview over at ANN, or my notes below!

Continue reading →

Why It Works: My Hero Academia Quarterfinal Roundup

Posted on by

Today on Why It Works, I basically let myself geek out and do all that in-universe theorizing that really isn’t actually criticism. I’ve already read through the whole sports festival arc, but I tried to just rely on exactly what we know so far to inform this article, which meant my terrible memory actually came in handy for once. I really enjoy doing more flavor-focused articles, and I hope you all like them too!

Why It Works: My Hero Academia Quarterfinal Roundup

Wandering Son – Episode 9

Posted on by

Wandering Son’s ninth episode opens with Takatsuki waking up and putting on a boy’s school uniform. The show spends significant time on this ritual, varying its shots and emphasizing his specific sequence of motions, like dressing in this uniform is some delicate and critical thing. This moment is delicate and critical – it is important to Takatsuki, and has significance far outside of its immediate, physical difficulty.

Continue reading →

Tsuki ga Kirei – Episode 7

Posted on by

Tsuki ga Kirei’s leads took a trip to the amusement park this week, giving them a chance to sigh and fumble and generally not be sure what to do with their hands in an entirely new setting. This episode also saw the show at its most thematically focused, as basically everything here was designed to articulate one more specific and very relatable moment in adolescent love. Good stuff all around!

You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my notes below.

Continue reading →

Chihayafuru – Episode 3

Posted on by

It’s time for more Chihayafuru! Episode two led us to the founding of Chihaya, Taichi, and Wataya’s original friendship, after Taichi’s jealousy resulted in a pretty tumultuous sixth grade karuta tournament. The episode did solid work for both Taichi and Wataya’s characters, while also offering plenty of sunny Chihaya spirit to counterbalance her alternately gloomy and vengeful friends. The show hasn’t really hit a propulsive stride yet, but it’s still an enjoyable and generally well-realized production. Let’s see what episode three brings!

Continue reading →

Spring 2017 – Week 7 in Review

Posted on by

Look, this season is just great, guys. I don’t know how many times I can say it. A season that’s simultaneously airing one of My Hero Academia’s best arcs, the sequel to one of my favorite shows ever, and the spiritual successor to Shirobako would frankly have a damn hard time being bad. Even with Tsuki ga Kirei taking the week off, there were no shortage of high points this week – Sakura Quest had one of its best episodes, My Hero Academia ran through an entire goddamn tournament bracket, and even Re:Creators pulled off some of its most rewarding conversations yet. This is a fine time to be an anime fan!

Alright, let’s get right to it.

Continue reading →

The Eccentric Family 2 – Episode 7

Posted on by

Holy crap they killed Soun. Really didn’t see that one coming. I’d figured after the first season, he’d either be gone forever or a threat forever – I didn’t expect him to come back, briefly threaten Yasaburo once more, and then die in ignominy. This episode managed to draw a poignancy out of his passing that I also didn’t expect, but then again, that’s Eccentric Family’s bread and butter. But anyway, let’s get to the piece!

You can check out my supersized review over at ANN, or my notes below.

Continue reading →

Ode to Nichijou

Posted on by

Where do I even begin with Nichijou.

I could start with its technical merits, I suppose? Because the show certainly is technically meritorious. Where other Kyoto Animation highlights like Hyouka and Sound! Euphonium use their beautiful, well-observed character animation to present an illusion of heightened realism, Nichijou features a cast of simplified character designs and over-the-top motion. And that is the first element of its genius.

Continue reading →