Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Though it is technically the end of the spring anime season, the summer heat is currently reducing my cat to a sad puddle, and I am not faring much better myself. I have been attempting to beat the heat by preoccupying myself with essential anime viewing, and have so far made it just over halfway through Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water. The show has been an interesting watch so far, more educational than fully entertaining, but certainly a worthy sort of education. Watching Nadia, it is easy to see elements that Gainax would reiterate in Neon Genesis Evangelion, but also hard to believe how they jumped from this show’s proudly rudimentary characterization to the thoughtful interrogations of its successor. I’ll have more thoughts on that when I finish, but for now, let’s burn through a fresh selection of films!
Tag Archives: One Piece
One Piece – Episode 1089
Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today’s project is a bit unusual, as we are neither touching down on a new production nor continuing one of our existing journeys – instead, we’re plunking down right at episode 1089 of the long-running One Piece. As any followers of my twitter account likely know, I’ve spent the last few years diving ever-deeper into One Piece, and ultimately coming to appraise it alongside Hunter x Hunter as a superior and frankly incredible shonen production. The story’s scope, skill of execution, and constant creative embellishments make it a source of continuous wonder; it embodies the essence of cartooning while also succeeding as a grand fantasy epic, and I would recommend anyone who’s curious about it to at least check out the manga.
As for our current assignment, episode 1089 marks the transition from the long-lasting, feudal Japan-themed Wano arc to the current Egghead arc, which the anime production accompanied with a wholesale reimagining of the One Piece aesthetic. Gone are the formidable line weights and bright colors of Wano, replaced by delicate lines and pastels that harken back to One Piece’s original look. It’s a transition with a clear thematic intent: after the high dramatic peaks of Wano, Egghead is partially intended as a nostalgic return to form, a reminder of the freewheeling “what will the next island hold” spirit that once characterized this production. From their arrival at the second half of the Grand Line through Wano, Luffy and his companions’ course was largely directed by their alliance with fellow pirate Trafalgar Law – but now that the goals of that alliance have been achieved, the Straw Hats are again free to sail wherever the winds might take them. Let’s get to it!
Spring 2024 – Week 4 in Review
Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. It’s been another productive week on my end, as I’ve reduced my outstanding Current Projects to less than a dozen essays and other features, with my article buffer now encompassing more than a month’s worth of drafts. I’ve matched that productivity with a fair portion of off-the-books anime viewing, as we munched through more of Gundam’s supplementary Universal Century projects, as well as anime films both venerable and vestigial. Having watched so many of the early Toei films, I’m now looking to round out my ‘80s animation education, while also likely taking a break from Gundam to watch some other outstanding series; I haven’t quite decided yet, but Nadia, Mononoke, VOTOMS, and Moribito are all high on my list. Anyway, I’ll catch you all up on that when I get to it, but for now let’s break down my latest animated escapades!
Spring 2024 – Week 2 in Review
Hello folks, and welcome on back to Wrong Every Time. It seems like spring is actually getting off its ass and into some sort of motion at this point, as we’ve finally escaped the chills and showers of early April. I’m thus looking forward to sneaking in a run sometime this afternoon, but in the meantime I’m happy to report that both our film viewings and tabletop adventures are proceeding smoothly.
I’m attempting to maintain a somewhat tricky balance in our current campaign, as I’m both the most comfortable speaking entirely in-character, but also aware of my necessity as a player who actually pushes the party towards their next objectives, rather than simply riffing or waiting for something to happen. As such, I need to be mindful of making sure neither my characterization nor mechanical prodding becomes too overbearing; I’m leading from the back here, but working to make sure Tilly (my nervous goblin cleric) doesn’t overwhelm either the personalities or agency of my allies. D&D is often a process of attempting to construct a coherent fantasy drama out of potentially incompatible base materials, but with a full campaign as DM at my back, I’m doing whatever I can to make sure this one succeeds, and that we collectively embrace a greater degree of in-character drama than ever before. Also, films! Let’s get to those!
Winter 2024 – Week 12 in Review
Hello folks, and welcome the heck back to Wrong Every Time. Today I am riding high on the success of our new campaign’s first session, wherein I took on the guise of Tilly The Goblin With Anxiety, and became fast… well, acquaintances at least with my party of a swashbuckler, mad scientist, and Dandelion From The Witcher. Having already completed two campaigns with this group, our confidence in executing in-character drama has never been higher; compared to actually serving as dungeon master, simply staying in character during the session feels totally effortless, and I’m thus looking forward to more directly party-driven drama in the sessions to come. And alongside that, I have of course continued with our regularly scheduled film and anime screenings, munching through some light One Piece adventures while also completing Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory. I’m frankly not quite sure where to go at this point in our Gundam journey; I suppose Gundam Unicorn would be the next natural step? Anyway, I’ll figure that out myself, while you all enjoy my latest week in films!
The Leaf and the Giant: The Astonishing Animation of Akihiro Ota
So, goddamn Wano, huh? It turns out I caught up on One Piece at an exceptionally good time. Over the past several years, the team at Toei have endeavored to make One Piece’s latest arc a landmark in the genre, a towering feat of animation offering film-tier feats of fluidity and scale on a nearly weekly basis. From the moment the Straw Hat crew set foot on Wano’s long-awaited shores, it was clear something was different; the arc immediately dispensed with One Piece’s traditionally thin linework and limited shading, offering instead bold splashes of ink and color emulating audacious works of traditional calligraphy. Yet at the same time, one of my favorite things about Wano is how loosely it treats its new art design mandate; its aesthetic is a suggestion, not a demand, and individual animators frequently stray far beyond the models and linework of Wano’s standard mode.
Top Anime of 2023 (And Year in Review)
Another year has come and gone, leaving us undeniably older and presumably wiser, though at this point it’s hard for me to tell if each new year of knowledge outpaces the mental erosion of aging. That phrase “they’ve forgotten more about subject than you’ll ever know” always seemed a bit strange to me – I mean, I’ve forgotten way more stuff than I’ve remembered, and I don’t exactly take that as a point of pride. I’m really good at forgetting stuff! It’s probably what I’m best at! It does not make me a better thinker or critic!
Summer 2023 – Week 10 in Review
Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. The warm days of summer are currently ceding to chill winds and autumn leaves, which is normally a time of great existential terror for me, but I’ve frankly been so preoccupied by the day-to-day chaos of life that I can’t really bother to be scared about aging with nothing to show for it. Instead, I’ve been keeping busy with writing projects big and small, from breaking into the deliciously well-written It’s MyGO! to proofreading the last few quests of my DnD campaign. Also, the live action One Piece came out! My expectations were thoroughly muted after the disastrous live action Cowboy Bebop, but positive buzz and my abiding love for the material drew me back, and I’m happy to report that the live action One Piece is nearly as good as a live action One Piece could possibly be. What does that mean? I’m glad you asked!
Top Anime of 2022 (and Year in Review)
After a pair of years that saw the world trapped in pandemic-driven stasis, I suppose it’s only fitting that 2022 would rally back as an Everything Happens So Much sort of year. That’s fine by me though; it’s been a tough run through these last few winters, and where I once would have felt anxious about how everything inevitably changes, I’m starting to think it might not be so awful. Twitter might now be ruled by an idiot child king, but I’m also feeling more invigorated about anime viewing than I have in years, so hey; you take the good with the bad.
Spring 2022 – Week 8 in Review
Hello folks, and welcome back to my small slice of the internet. Summer arrived in force this week, heralding ninety degree afternoons and a whole lot of general dampness. I’m not complaining, though; I’ll take oppressive heat over oppressive cold any day, and will be enjoying my newly walkable city until the next eight-month winter arrives. Boston is actually quite nice in the summer; we’ve got a wide array of public parks, Cambridge is essentially an urban college town, and we’re positively lousy with colonial architecture and monuments. I am in fact convincing myself to go for a walk as I type, so let’s wrap up this aimless preamble, and get to the real meat of the article. A new week has passed, some excellent films have been screened, and I’m eager to share my findings with you. Let’s get to it!