At the time this article is posting, I’ll almost certainly be in some sort of half-conscious fugue state, foaming and gnashing my teeth as I fight through yet another mediocre anime premiere. Fortunately, from whatever point in the past I’m actually writing this, I still have enough sanity left to break down the final embers of the summer season. With given already concluded, we’ve only got two shows to cover this time, but let’s try and make the most of them. For the very last time, it’s the Summer 2019 Week in Review!
Tag Archives: Granbelm
Summer 2019 – Week 12 in Review
Alright folks, pile in, pile in. The summer season isn’t technically over yet, but we’re basically there – Granbelm and Carole & Tuesday still need to pop out their last episodes, but Given is already over, and the fall premieres are just a week ago. That’s frankly a terrifying thought to me, as I feel like I’ve been perpetually trying to catch up this entire season, and have no idea how I’m going to power my way through O Maidens and Vinland Saga. But hey, that’s a problem for another day – for now, I’ve got plenty of rambling thoughts on the week’s cartoons to share with you all. Without further ado, it’s the Week in Review!
Summer 2019 – Week 11 in Review
We’re arriving at the season’s endgame now, as all of our summer contenders marshal their forces for their assorted finales. As misunderstandings are cleared up and final stakes are clarified, shows often reveal their most fundamental natures here – the conflict, relationship, or central idea they hold most closely, and are willing to stake their last and most consequential episodes on resolving. Given has turned out to be most fundamentally a romance, surprising no one, while Carole & Tuesday continues to use its efficiently sketched human characters to reflect on modern society in general. And Granbelm, well…
I guess we should start with that one.
Summer 2019 – Week 10 in Review
We had two hits and a miss for this week in anime, and boy do I ever have a lot to talk about. While Granbelm continued to flounder in its attempts to make sense of its own wibbly-wobbly worldbuilding, both Given and Carole & Tuesday turned in truly astonishing performances, with Given in particular offering the episode we’ve been awaiting all season. I’m pretty sure both of those shows are going to end up in my top five anime of the year, and I’m loving the fireworks as each of them move towards their hopefully satisfying conclusions. Apparently Given is actually based on a still-ongoing manga, but I could easily see at least this arc resolving itself somewhat cleanly; meanwhile, Carole & Tuesday only seems to exude more and more confidence as it strides towards its end. Let’s get to it and break down some shows!
Why It Works: Announcing the Contenders of This Season’s High-Stakes GRANBELM
Today on Why It Works, I had a great deal of fun writing another in-universe flavor article, this time about GRANBELM’s many ferocious heroines. I always really enjoy writing these sorts of pieces, which is one reason I tend to write so many Crunchyroll articles about My Hero Academia and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventures – they’re both universes that invite tactical speculation, and embody a specific authorial tone that’s really fun to emulate. GRANBELM occupies a similar combination of tactics and tone, and has been keeping me fully stocked on satisfying action even as the season’s ostensible shonen front-runners have faltered. Let’s get to it!
Announcing the Contenders of This Season’s High-Stakes GRANBELM
Summer 2019 – Week 9 in Review
To the likely surprise of no-one, I spent last week desperately assaulting a fortress of professional responsibilities both fresh and familiar, and have at this point come to terms with the fact that I’m probably not catching up on O Maidens before the end of the season. Fortunately, the shows I’m still sticking with offered more than enough to ramble about, and Given in particular is turning out to be one of the most unexpected gems of the year so far. Though the show’s visuals are a little restrained, its richness of character and acuity of dialogue run circles around most anime, with each episode leaving me even more impressed with its scripting, and even more invested in its stars. It’s definitely my breakout pick of the season, so let’s start with that one, as we run down one more Week in Anime!
Summer 2019 – Week 8 in Review
With a massive backlog behind me and a whole bunch of reader-funded projects and various other freelance works ahead of me, it’s been hard to find time to watch anime for my own enjoyment this week. I wasn’t actually able to get to O maidens in time for this Week in Review, but fortunately, I had more than enough thoughts on this week’s other productions to make up for it. I’m actually watching a lot less seasonal anime than I used to, but the thoughts I’m producing on those shows are both lengthier and better-informed, so that’s an okay tradeoff, right? WATCHING ANIME IS HARD, OKAY.
Alright, enough excuses. Let’s break down what I actually did watch in one more Week in Review!
Summer 2019 – Week 7 in Review
Well folks, it was time for the Week in Review about an hour ago, and I’m just now typing this introduction, so I’ll keep things brief. The shows I’m watching are very good, and this week offered a bunch of very good episodes – Granbelm pulled off another totally stunning action spectacle, Given retained its sharp emotional acuity and believable characterization, and Carole & Tuesday offered another top-tier vignette that managed a surprising balance of comedy and sympathetic drama. The summer season continues to be extremely strong, and I’m happy to enjoy a crop of shows that could all conceivably be top picks within a less impressive season. Let’s get to the breakdown!
Summer 2019 – Week 6 in Review
I’ve been dealing with some close personal tragedy this week, but hey, I’m still here. I thought about maybe taking this week off from the Week in Review, and really couldn’t have imagined watching and enjoying seasonal anime a few days ago, but returning to cartoon normalcy has actually been a big emotional help. And it’s nice that this season’s anime are themselves so emotionally generous, from the rich tonal sympathy of Given to the tangled dramatic knots of O Maidens. I’m still feeling pretty hollow and distant at the moment, but I appreciate the company of all of you, and the comfort of returning to the things I love. Let’s talk about some cartoons.
Summer 2019 – Week 5 in Review
I have at last reduced the summer season’s bounty down to a refined and largely sustainable top shelf, and goddamn is it glorious. After being kind of spoiled by Vinland Saga’s first three-episode premiere, I’ve decided that’s the preferable way to experience viking shenanigans, and held off on watching this week’s episode to build up more of a buffer. Fortunately, even without Vinland Saga, every other show I’m watching was strong enough to give me more than enough highlights to ramble about. Okada’s strong catalog meant I was pretty sure O Maidens would be a hit, but I think this is actually one of the very best stories she’s ever worked on. Meanwhile, Given is serving as an unexpected and highly compelling character drama, while Granbelm is turning out to be the secret action highlight of the season. Let’s break it all down in one more Week in Review!