Tag Archives: Anime

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju – Review

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And here’s my review of the winter season’s clear star, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju. Rakugo is clearly a very impressive show, and its direction couldn’t be better, but I still found myself with some misgivings about the overall production. It’s weird, because I’ve seen plenty of people talking about how emotional the show’s final episodes made them, but Rakugo just did almost nothing for me on that level. I tried to sort out my feelings in the review, but it’s still something that leaves me a little stumped.

You can check out my full review over at ANN!

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju

Spring 2016 – Virtually Every First Episode Retrospective

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This season is incredibly dangerous, you guys. I know first weeks are always misleading, and that at least a few shows generally fall apart soon after a strong premiere, but there are just so many good shows in so many genres that I feel I’m finally going to be buried in cartoons. There are tons of great action shows, plenty of diverse comedies, dramas and slice of lifes and Concrete Revolutio besides. It really does feel like there’s something for everyone this season – not only is it a diverse crop, but the best shows are scattered across a wide range of potential tastes.

That said, there are certainly both winners and losers among this group, and busy anime consumer that you are, I’m sure you don’t have the time to sift for the best of them. So as usual, I’ll be breaking down this season’s premieres into distinct, precisely calibrated categories, starting with the shows to celebrate and moving on through to the shows that punished me for daring to live. All the links on the show names lead to the ANN preview guide pages, where you can find my more extensive thoughts on every single one under Nick Creamer. I’m sure you’ve got a lot to do, so let’s cut the preamble here and RUN ‘EM DOWN!

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She and Her Cat -Everything Flows- – Review

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Having gotten quite a number of recommendations for it, I finally went back and checked out the season’s secret gem, the new version of She and Her Cat. The Makoto Shinkai version of this story isn’t particularly noteworthy, but this new one is excellent, which isn’t that surprising – it features a top-tier director handling material perfectly suited to his strengths. Daru is one of the most believably animated animals I’ve seen, and the overall story is wonderfully understated and beautifully atmospheric. It’s barely a time commitment at all, either, so it’s definitely worth a look.

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

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Puella Magi Madoka Magica – Episode 6

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It turns out deals with devils generally aren’t the most reliable bargains. The consequences of Sayaka’s choice begin to pile up in this episode, as her rescue by Homura only seems to prolong the inevitable. Sayaka’s self-image and motivations are fundamentally incompatible with the nature of a magical girl; the more she struggles, the worse things become. And Kyubey knows this, and always knew this, but he doesn’t care – Sayaka herself is not important to him. Sayaka is leverage, one more tool moving him closer to his actual prey.

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Legend of the Galactic Heroes – Episode 56

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Legend of the Galactic Heroes doesn’t impress its worldview on the viewer through single dramatic speeches, or rousing moments in the heat of battle. It’s constructed not as a war epic, but as a historical chronicle, and its cynicism towards the great acts of men carries the great fatigue only a long-view perspective can bring. Men may inspire others to action, and even rule over their fellows for a time. Men can commit great and terrible acts, and their names can occasionally become renowned enough to be remembered. But men die, and the world moves on. History is larger than our capacity to make it.

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Spring 2016 – First Impressions, Part Two

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The hits and misses continue this week, as another handful of shows are tossed right dang into our laps. As usual, the accumulation of shows worth sticking around for is a slow process marked by a whole lot of suffering – but I’m the only one here who actually has to watch all this crap, so please, enjoy my wailing and gnashing of teeth. Outside of Mayoiga being significantly more ridiculous than anticipated, the season’s performing about as well as I’d expected so far, meaning we’ll likely end up with a pretty solid line of hopefuls. The future is always bright!

Cerberus

You can check out the full list of reviews over at ANN, or check below the cut for individual scores and links for everything added since the last post. Time to get back to it!

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Puella Magi Madoka Magica – Episode 5

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Episode five opens with that repeated shot from Kyousuke’s bedside, as the wind blows from the outside world he can’t reach. It’s one of many visual touchstones that Madoka Magica works hard to establish and solidify, giving the show a strong internal vocabulary. The coming scene revels in another of Madoka’s big visual icons; the distinctive profile of Kyubey himself, as Sayaka agrees to make a deal.

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Spring 2016 – First Impressions, Part One

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Preview week has begun! The shows are already starting to pile up, and as usual, I’ve got a bunch of picks and unpicks and first impressions for your approval. The season has sadly not measured up to expectations so far, what with one of my top picks (Mayoiga) turning out to be so-bad-it’s-good and one of my speculative picks (Kumamiko) just turning out straight bad. But I’ve still already got several shows I’m planning to follow up on, and the deluge of shows has only just begun. There’s nothing out yet that I have high hopes of truly loving, but if you’re an action fan, both JoJo and My Hero Academia are sure to please!

Kumamiko

You can check out the full list of shows so far over at ANN, and as usual, I’m including individual links and grades for everything I’ve hit so far below the cut. Happy anime hunting!

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Dagashi Kashi – Episode 12

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Dagashi Kashi concludes with one more in a long series of pleasant but not particularly noteworthy slice of life vignettes, offering about as little of a real conclusion as you’d expect from a show about wasting time on summer break. There were some cute character moments here and there, some light sprinklings of fanservice, and a few final explanations of dagashi trivia to see us out. I suppose Dagashi Kashi ended up occupying my “pleasant fluff” slot this season, and as far as pleasant fluff goes, it did its job perfectly well. I liked the atmosphere this show created, and had a pretty good time throughout.

You can check out my last review over at ANN, or my very minor notes below!

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Texhnolyze – Episode 1

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Texhnolyze certainly has a reputation. The show comes courtesy of one of anime’s great creative supergroups; with a screenplay by Chiaka Konaka, character designs by Yoshitoshi ABe, and Yasuyuki Ueda on board as producer, it features the same core team that gave Serial Experiments Lain such a vivid personality. The three clearly had a strong relationship of some kind; Ueda was actually the producer who first hired ABe (they also worked together on Haibane Renmei), and Konaka and ABe were known as friends as well. Discounting the absence of Ryutaro Nakamura (who directed Serial Experiments Lain and Ghost Hound, and was intending to work on the never-released Despera with ABe and Konaka), you’ve got all the key players of one of the 00s great anime lineups.

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