And we’re back with more ef! Last episode accomplished something absolutely crucial for this story – it made me actually care about Chihiro and her strange condition. Chihiro seemed designed as that classic mix of frail, demure, and doomed that’s pretty much death to my investment, but by immediately acknowledging and exploring the lived experience of her condition, the show was able to make her feel not just pitiable, but actually relatable. Fantastical situations inherently dampen an audience’s ability to relate to drama, but if those situations are framed in terms of understandable human feelings, that bridge becomes easy to cross. Let’s see what episode four brings!
Tag Archives: Anime
Why It Works: Shadows Over My Hero Academia
Today on Why It Works, I plot out the groundwork for how season two will start to mess with the first season’s general thoughts on heroism. I’m kinda cheating, since I’ve actually read through the next couple arcs, but it was still nice to see how the first episode established so many of the conflicts that will play into this arc’s major themes. I hope you enjoy the piece!
Why It Works: Shadows Over My Hero Academia
Natsume’s Book of Friends – Episode 6
Natsume and his human friends begin this episode by visiting a massive dam constructed over a former village. The mere fact of Natsume’s presence on this trip implies things have changed for him – from largely being known as that weird, quiet kid who seems to see things, he’s now got stable friends who invite him on stuff like fishing trips. Natsume is growing up, both through his experiences with youkai and his experiences with all the humans around him.
Casshern Sins – Episode 11
Hey all, and welcome back to Casshern Sins. Casshern has finally arrived at something resembling a clear goal now – discover the true fate of Luna, and through doing so perhaps save his world. Meanwhile, Casshern’s vague “antagonist” Dio and his confidante are building forces for their own attempt at saving this world, one which would likely necessitate destroying Casshern. Given the last episode focused solely on Dio, I’m expecting us to return to a Casshern-side vignette here, which I’m perfectly happy about. The show’s vignettes have in general been stronger than its overarching narrative, so let’s see what we’ve got!
Bakemonogatari – Episode 12
At last, we arrive at the most acclaimed episode of Monogatari’s first season. Bakemonogatari #12 is a remarkable episode, and I enjoyed it even more upon revisit. This episode basically condenses more chemistry, flirting, and romantic truth into one episode than most dedicated romances manage in a full series, a pretty solid feat for a show that isn’t even really a romance in general. Nice going, Monogatari.
You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my notes below.
Spring 2017 – First Impressions, Part Two
The season just keeps on rambling! I’m frankly pretty overwhelmed at the moment – not only is this one of the larger seasons we’ve had, well, ever, but I’m also juggling maybe half a dozen other articles per week, along with a variety of other boring responsibilities. So I hope you guys appreciate me cataloging all this crap! I’m guessing the rest of the shows will just be folded into the overall Virtually Every First Episode Retrospective, but until then, you can check out the full list over at ANN or click through to my individual scores and reviews below. LET’S GET TO IT!
Spring 2017 – First Impressions, Part One
The season’s in full swing now, so it’s time once again to take stock of where we’re at so far. With six shows released as of today, things are playing out pretty much by the script – My Hero Academia has the same issues the first season did, Alice & Zoroku is the most promising new property, and nothing else is really worth mentioning. Titan is still Titan, but I’m not really at a point where I feel obligated to watch the crossover hits anymore, so I’ll probably be skipping that one.
As usual, you can see a list of my scores so far below, and click on any of the titles to link to their full review pages, or just go to the overall review page here. Have at it!
Nichijou – Review
IT’S TIME FOR MORE NICHIJOU TALK. Unsatisfied with simply rambling about every episode right here, today I’ve got a review of Kyoto Animation’s comic revelation over on ANN. It was actually really tough to talk about Nichijou’s strengths on a macro level – explaining the jokes doesn’t really do them justice, and much of the show’s strength comes in its precisely combined details of execution. Still, hopefully I conveyed the gist.
You can check out my full review over at ANN.
Kemono Friends – Review
Today on ANN, I offer just a few more words on last season’s Kemono Friends. It’s been a fun show to discuss through the season, offering unique points of critique in both its strengths and weaknesses. Many shows are just generally polished or generally crummy, but Kemono Friends’ strange, imbalanced qualities kept it interesting all along the way. I hope you enjoy the review!
You can check out my piece over at ANN.
Mawaru Penguindrum – Episode 15
Penguindrum’s fifteenth episode begins with a young Yuri declaring that “I’ll never be free as long as that tower stands.” In the distance rises a giant, improbable skyscraper in the shape of Michelangelo’s David. It’s a testament to her sculptor father’s power and influence – wherever that tower can see, Yuri remains under his watchful eye. A metaphor made real, standing as the cruel arbitrator of Yuri’s life.