Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to the battlefield of Blue Reflection Ray, as our brave heroines do their best to prevent some kind of dimension-collapsing apocalypse. While Hiori, Ruka, and their companions seek a happier union between conscious identity and emotional trauma, Shino’s red reflectors pursue an all-or-nothing approach: either our emotions must be banished to allow us freedom from sorrow, or our world and the collective consciousness of the Common must merge, ensuring total mutual understanding forevermore.

It’s certainly a fatalistic philosophy, but to those who have suffered like Niina, or made others suffer like Mio, both the assurance of Shino’s confidence and the escape she promises can seem like a light in the darkness. Fortunately, Niina appears well on her way to joining our crew, and is currently kicking all sorts of emotional ass in her defiant antihero arc. Meanwhile, our girls’ trip to the unconscious Momo has introduced a pair of mysterious new characters to the mix, the supremely Uranus and Neptune-coded Ryoka and Amiru. Things are moving quickly in the wake of Shino’s aborted apocalypse, and I’m eager to see how these new additions complicate the situation. Let’s return to the fight!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to the tormented drama of Blue Reflection Ray, in the wake of a grand confrontation that seemed to leave everyone worse off than before. Shino’s plans to align the realm of contiguous emotions known as the Common with our own world were ultimately thwarted, but Mio ended up paying the price, once again assuming the burden of suffering such that her loved ones might be spared. Both parties fled the church in disarray, with the fabric of reality rent but not entirely broken.

Fortunately, at least one of our poor reflectors appears to have improved their circumstances. Niina was always the most sympathetic of the red reflectors; having suffered a lifetime of exploitation and rejection, it was completely understandable why she’d cling to Mio for salvation, and agree to whatever scheme Mio’s allies had planned. When it became clear Mio herself was being exploited by Shino, the resulting guilt almost led her to embrace the emotional absolution of her allies – but through Shiori’s vindication of her emotions, she found the strength to take pride in her love, and ended up accompanying the blue reflectors in their retreat. The girl has seriously earned a break, and I’m hoping the cooldown of that confrontation will give her a chance to enjoy the lighter side of adolescence. Regardless, the threat of world convergence continues to hang overhead as we return to Blue Reflection Ray!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to Blue Reflection Ray in the heat of the action, as blue and red reflectors clash while a new world struggles to be born. Driven by the seemingly apocalyptic machinations of Shino, Mio was drawn into battle against her sister Hiori and former partner Momo. Now Momo lies dying among the pews, Mio has become lost in her own feelings of despair, and the world seems poised to collide upon itself, the realm of fragments and feelings known as the “Common” collapsing upon our own world of closed, physical shells.

That’s probably not good! Though Shino claims she intends to manage the roiling emotions of the Common directly, I cannot imagine she possesses either the power or temperament necessary to install herself as perpetual ruler of human sentiment. Unfortunately, the blue reflectors have themselves done little to offer a compelling counterargument, instead hinging their philosophy on feel-good “we must embrace our trauma to overcome it” bromides that offer little of substance to lost souls like Niina. And I love that! I love that no one in this show seems to have the “correct” answer to emotional pain, I love that reflectors are being framed as inherently out-of-place intrusions on reality, and I love that we’re reaching the halfway point of this production with an apocalypse looming and no clear way to avoid it. This production’s overarching narrative is proving as confident and distinctive as its psychological inquiry, and I’m eager to see how it surprises me next. Let’s get to it!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today is certain to be a moment of reckoning, as we return to Blue Reflection Ray with Mio’s promised reprieve just now coming to its end. Having vowed to rewrite the past and thus provide her doomed world with a future, Mio is prepared to do whatever it takes to protect her sister Hiori. Meanwhile, Shino waits hungrily in the shadows, plotting to turn that same sister into the despairing fuel for her ambitions, with Mio’s demise likely serving as the catalyst.

It’s all a satisfying muddle of desperate hopes and brewing betrayals, lent some welcome emotional weight through the clear merit of Mio’s challenge to the Blue Reflectors. “Embrace your trauma in order to overcome it” is not a universally applicable solution, particularly for someone like Nina, who has not only suffered more acutely than any of our heroic leads, but who also lacks the support network that cushioned characters like Miyako through their recovery. And beyond this, for all we’ve learned about the reflectors, they still appear to be appendages of a system we do not understand, designed for purposes that remain wholly unclear. Thus our heroes enter the day of reckoning with no plan, no coherent philosophy, and no understanding of their own purpose. Let’s get to it!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we stand on the precipice of apocalypse as we return to Blue Reflection Ray, in the wake of Momo’s revelatory confrontation with her former partner Mio. There’s apparently a good reason why Momo’s memories of their partnership are unclear: she actually died in the wake of their final defeat, alongside everyone else in this world. But the universe has provided our reflectors another chance to make good, and this time, Mio is determined to achieve victory no matter the cost.

This explanation does a fine job of explaining Mio’s actions so far, as sacrifices made and bridges burned in order to save those she loves, even if they themselves cannot understand her actions. It also offers more context regarding this whole reflector paradigm, which is apparently an instrument of a higher organization that has somehow spun off its tracks, leaving both blue and red reflectors with no certain purpose. That in turn furthers Blue Reflection Ray’s thematic conflict, challenging Momo’s assertion that the only antidote to trauma is drawing it into the light. As Mio said, that might work perfectly fine for someone as strong as Momo or Miyako, but what about Niina, or Kana? Without a support structure and strong sense of self, simply facing your trauma isn’t likely to resolve it; as such, it is likely that both red and blue reflectors have their place, each a necessary aid in the protection and liberation of those imprisoned by their darkest feelings. Let’s see if these girls can find some common ground as we return to Blue Reflection Ray!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to the battlefield of Blue Reflection Ray, after a slew of revelations left our heroes scattered and nearly without hope. In the wake of learning about her sister’s Red Reflector identity, Hiori chose to respond like she always has: by suppressing her feelings of hurt and abandonment, and acting like nothing is wrong.

Fortunately, Ruka is not the same girl she was eight episodes ago, when she lamented that she couldn’t reach out to those in pain like Hiori managed so easily. Ruka challenged Hiori to embrace her sorrow, to “realize how important your feelings are too,” and with that the dam finally broke. Just as Hiori was once able to express her pain regarding her mother’s departure to Mio, now can she express her true feelings regarding Mio to Ruka, a confidant who would never pity her.

With our lead reflectors now resonating like never before, I imagine it’s time for a counteroffensive against the increasingly audacious agents of Mio. They’ve accelerated from individual soul-stealing to app-based crowdsourcing to mass emotion-sapping weather phenomenon, and it’s up to our brave heroes to put a stop to it. Plus, with Hiori and Ruka making such positive strides, I’m hoping it’s time for Miyako to gain her own reflector credentials, and perhaps a sweet reflector weapon in the bargain. Regardless, the hour of conflict draws near as we return to Blue Reflection Ray!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to Blue Reflection Ray, in the wake of a confrontation that proved devastating for our would-be heroes. Hiori’s positive attitude has always seemed brittle at best, an aspirational facade draped over a core of hurt and longing for her sister’s return. Having been abandoned by both her mother and sister, she was nonetheless beginning to embrace the new family of her fellow reflectors – until her sister Mio at last reappeared, now dedicated to stealing the pain from the hearts of others, and with a replacement sister standing at her side.

Hiori’s situation echoes the moral ambiguity of our reflectors’ general ambitions. Though they seek to address the pain of others through offering companionship and nurturing their hopes, Hiori clearly demonstrates that such an approach doesn’t necessarily address or repair their core emotional wounds. If even a blue reflector like Hiori is only pretending to have overcome her trauma, what right do any of our heroes have to claim their mission is just, particularly when the alleged victims of the red reflectors are outright telling them to mind their own business. Is it truly any healthier to live with trauma than to excise it? We cling to the post-hoc rationalization that suffering makes us who we are, but is it fundamentally noble to feel broken, or are we simply attempting to draw meaning from the senseless violence of life? With such difficult questions now clouding the air, we return to the battlefield of Blue Reflection Ray!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re returning to the tangled drama of Blue Reflection Ray, a fact I announce with some trepidation, given the show’s recent turn towards genuinely harrowing personal drama. Princess Yuki’s experiences with online abuse served as a thoughtful exploration of both the promise and dangers of seeking community online, effectively capturing the contradictions of socializing in online spaces. For the many people feeling isolated in our increasingly atomized modern world, online communities are a crucial lifeline – but crowdsourcing your sense of self-worth is an incredibly fraught gambit, thus necessitating the forging of genuine, intimate connections like Yuki’s bond with Miyako.

Then we got into Niina’s story, which has proven even more devastating. Abused by her mother and eventually cast out on the street, Niina had lost all hope for the future when she was discovered by Hiori’s sister Mio, and drawn into the company of the red reflectors. Could any promise our team might offer sound like anything but fanciful, naive lies to one so mistreated by life? Regardless, I’ve been thoroughly impressed by Blue Reflection Ray’s refusal to pull its punches, and can only hope better things lie ahead for poor Niina. Let’s get to it!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to return to Blue Reflection Ray, after an episode that proved the series’ strongest yet. With our core team of Ruka, Hiori, Miyako, and Momo established, the team set to work hunting down “Princess Yuki,” who appeared to possess the power to remove the Fragments of others. However, this turned out to be a ruse – the true Yuki was being manipulated by the sadistic Uta, who only wished her to become so isolated that her own fragment would naturally emerge.

Alongside serving as a fine mystery caper in its own right, that episode offered a satisfyingly nuanced exploration of social media’s positive and negative potential. To those who are isolated within their own lives, the internet can become a lifeline, a path to community and mutual support. But at the same time, the inherent distancing effect and public nature of online discourse can make anyone a lightning rod for abuse, offering a sobering reminder that anonymous strangers make fickle confidants.

As an antidote to this crowdsourcing of intimacy, Miyako offered herself, making a genuine, vulnerable connection with the lonely Yukiko. I quite liked how this resulted in the episode ending without a fight altogether; rather than banishing Yukiko’s negative feelings via magic, Miyako actually challenged the emotional root of the problem. She’s already proven a key voice of reason within the group, and I’m looking forward to seeing how her journey continues from here. Let’s get to it!

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Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re diving back into Blue Reflection Ray, which most recently offered us the stinger of our delinquent Momo straight-up joining the rest of the cast’s high school class. Apparently no longer content to drive her motorcycle around looking cool all day, Momo has rejoined productive society, which will presumably give her far more chances to bond with Ruka, Hiori, and Miyako. Our team in general are starting to grow far closer; though Momo and Hiori are extremely different people, their contrasts are proving a fine basis for communication, a process facilitated through Miyako’s charmingly annoying provocations.

Aside from that, our recent drama has hewed to a reliable magical girl template, offering episodic dilemmas centered on the team’s schoolmates much in the manner of Sailor Moon or Ojamajo Doremi. Such conveniently resolved challenges are a natural complement to this “getting to know you” phase of the narrative, and if I were to guess, I’d hazard that we’re in for another side drama intended to push forward Momo and Miyako’s relationship. That’s perfectly fine by me; both of them are endearingly messy characters, with Miyako in particular proving the show’s standout so far. Let’s see how our team is evolving as we return to Blue Reflection Ray!

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