The Girl in Twilight – Episode 2

Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’re continuing The Girl in Twilight, an intriguing 2018 production concepted by renowned visual novelist Kotaro Uchikoshi. So far we’ve received a healthy helping of science fiction mysteries, with The Girl in Twilight’s worldbuilding feeling both alluring and confident. The show’s radio frequency conceit is a clever way of imagining parallel worlds, and the first episode wisely avoided any real exposition, letting the characters’ earnest reactions to their strange circumstances speak for themselves.

Of course, it’s not actually all that common for first episodes to drop the exposition hammer – that more frequently comes in the followup, after the wild, inexplicable theatrics of the first episode have already drawn you in. That said, the pacing and dialogue of Girl in Twilight’s first episode were compelling enough that I’m not too concerned about a followup slump, and more importantly, the first episode’s actual greatest strength was how well it depicted the believable friendships of its main cast – an asset built out of deep-root character and dialogue-writing fundamentals, which are not the sort of strengths that tend to dissipate after a premiere. That’s probably enough soon-to-be-outdated prognosticating, so let’s dive into The Girl in Twilight’s second episode!

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The Girl in Twilight – Episode 1

Hello all, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time! Today we’ll be embarking on a new notes project, as we explore the first episode of 2018’s The Girl in Twilight. This show was technically just the first wing of a theoretical multimedia project that also included a mobile game, a specific cross-promotional mix that has become increasingly common in recent years. It’s only really the mobile game aspect that’s new, though; anime are rarely green-lighted as fully self-contained commercial objects, and are generally intended to at the very least sell toys or music. In the age of massive mobile game sales, anime productions have naturally migrated towards promoting more mobile games; though in The Girl in Twilight’s case, the game it was promoting barely survived until the end of its own seasonal airing.

Moreso than its promotional intent, The Girl in Twilight’s most noteworthy feature is the presence of Kotaro Uchikoshi, who contributed the show’s base concept and scenario. Uchikoshi’s anime work has been pretty limited; his biggest “claim to fame” there is writing 2015’s Punch Line, which was a conceptually interesting and visually appealing production whose unfortunate “if I see panties the world ends” gimmick kept me from sticking with it. However, Uchikoshi is also responsible for writing the acclaimed Zero Escape game trilogy, along with a variety of other reality-bending, mystery-centered visual novels. The golden age of visual novels has tragically passed (they too have largely been replaced by mobile games), but Uchikoshi is considered one of its titans, and I’m excited to see his ideas at work in The Girl in Twilight. With our journey’s first steps established, let’s dive into The Girl in Twilight!

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Fall 2018 – Virtually Every First Episode Retrospective

Well folks, it’s that time again. With nearly every fall premiere now on the books, and me having also watched nearly all of those premieres, it’s time for me to break down what’s worth watching, what’s worth skipping, and what contains so much dark energy that merely glancing in its direction may scar your soul. It’s a serious duty, and I take it very seriously. Anime criticism is no joke!

As for this season in particular, I am thrilled to report that The Anime Is Good. After two straight seasons where I found myself having to stretch for a reasonable watch schedule, we are once again inundated with far too many good shows, in genres ranging from romance to drama to action to comedy and beyond. Several of this season’s premieres were genuinely stunning, far more offered sturdy entertainment from start to finish, and there were even some borderline efforts that still seemed like they might bloom into something wonderful. As usual, you can check out the full list of reviews over at ANN (check for Nick Creamer), or find quicker thoughts and my overall rankings below. Let’s celebrate some fresh new anime!

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Fall 2018 – First Impressions, Part One

Somehow, some way, a new season has already begun. Though the new shows are more of a trickle than a flood at this point, we’ve already got some strong contenders for the fall, including highly anticipated returning favorites and a welcome number of total surprises. There’s also been some crap, but hey, there’s always crap, and part of the fun of preview week is getting to briefly wade through the swamp that is the full spectrum of modern anime (at least, that’s what I tell myself). As usual, you can check out the full list of previews over at ANN, or check below for my own scores and links to individual show pages. We’ve got a lot of cartoons to get through, so let’s get started!

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