Tag Archives: Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

Why It Works: How Eizouken Embodies the Messy Thrill of Storytelling (Part Two)

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Today on Crunchyroll, I conclude my early breakdown of how Eizouken explores the genuine fundamentals of creating stories generally, and producing anime specifically. The show’s progression actually ended up helping me a great deal here – I was already planning on centering much of this half on how essential people like Kanamori are, and then episode four came along and basically served as a direct celebration of her talents. It’s always a joy to write about this show, and I hope you enjoy my piece. Let’s get to it!

How Eizouken Embodies the Messy Thrill of Storytelling (Part Two)

Why It Works: How Eizouken Embodies the Messy Thrill of Storytelling!

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I am sure it could not be less surprising that I’m favoring Eizouken in this season’s Why It Works columns, but you only get so many chances to write about shows this good. I’ve still got more Eizouken writing to do today, but I hope you enjoy this piece about how Eizouken reveals the true messiness of constructing a narrative. Here’s the piece!

How Eizouken Embodies the Messy Thrill of Storytelling!

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 2

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Hello folks, and welcome back to your regularly scheduled Eizouken gushing. In contrast with my first writeup, which I actually wrote while watching the show’s premiere for the very first time, I’ve actually watched Eizouken’s second episode twice already already – and at this particular moment, there is nothing I would rather do than watch it a third time. Alright, that’s a lie – I’d actually rather watch the third episode again, which I’ve only seen once so far, but that will have to come AFTER I finish this dang writeup.

Incidentally, if you’re looking for a deep dive into the production details behind this incredible anime, I’d strongly urge you to check out kViN’s in-depth articles over at the Sakuga Blog. I can say without hyperbole that kViN is one of the most passionate and knowledgeable animation enthusiasts in fandom, that he has raised the level of fan discourse regarding anime production in general, and that he’s also one of the nicest guys I know. I can’t hope to match his depth of insight regarding production staff, but I’m hoping to at least partially make up for in enthusiasm what I lack in expertise, and maybe even offer a few clever observations of my own. As a show specifically about the joy of artistic creation, Eizouken’s first three episodes have charmed and moved me more than any anime I’ve seen in quite some time, and I’m eager to share my delight in this show with you. Let’s get back to Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

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Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! – Episode 1

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NEW YUASA NEW YUASA NEW YUASA. If you’ve been around this site long enough, you probably know that Masaaki Yuasa is one of my favorite directors, and frankly one of the most noteworthy anime directors by any reasonable metric. Yuasa’s works melt and weave between visual styles, embracing animation’s ability to convey a sensory experience through visual transformations. They tend to be both visually astounding and also far more compelling as narratives than most of the medium – Yuasa never writes down to his audience, and generally picks only the best source material to transform into animation. And here at the start of 2020, this animator’s animator is tackling an even more animation-celebratory work, as he adapts a story that overtly celebrates the miracle of animation, and the joy of collective artistic discovery. Let’s dive into the first episode of Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

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Winter 2020 – Virtually Every First Episode Retrospective

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Well, 2020 has arrived, and we’re somehow all still here. Along with our own continued existence, it seems the anime industry has also persisted into the new decade, and has already blessed us with an unceasing spray of mostly mediocre productions. Fortunately for all of you, I have found a way to convert my increasing disillusionment regarding this art form into cold hard cash, a process that, as a byproduct, results in a staggering number of premiere reviews. Seriously, I’ve been doing this for over half a decade now, so that’s like… well into the hundreds… hmmm…

Alright, don’t really want to think about that. Instead, let’s get on to the day’s critical business – breaking down the 2020 winter anime season! Having reviewed nearly every single new premiere for ANN’s preview guide, I’m at last prepared to sort the season’s attractions from best to worst, grouping them into handy-dandy categories along the way. I’ll be including brief breakdowns of my thoughts here, and you can also click on any of the titles to be linked to the full ANN review page, where you can find my thoughts under Nick Creamer (which is my name). Without further ado, let’s run down the new anime season!

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