August 16, 2017
An Utter Failure...at Destroying Childhoods
Disney has put the first two episodes of Duck Tales online.
This is really well written and surprisingly faithful in tone to the 80's Cartoon, but even more so old Carl Banks comic it was loosely based on.
The characterizations of the kids, (er ducklings)are way better I was particularly relieved with what they did with Webby, who is a really neat character.
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Just Received A Brief, Terse Text
It contained information on how to access the following file...
I'll leave it to you to asses its importance.
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August 15, 2017
Attack on Titan Season 2
Attack on Titan continues to be unpredictable, generally well animated and interesting. It is also a seinen show and keeps the attention of its adolescent audience by tempering its introspective moments and thoughtful observations with amazing action scenes and visuals that frequently go beyond graphic to full on baroque in their depiction of carnage.
This space intentionally left blank.
After all the hints in season one, they are finally exploring what the hell was (and is) behind the calamity that inflicted implacable solar powered cannibalistic giants upon society.
That actual expository plot is kind of incoherent and at the end of the series we still have no idea what is actually behind this calamity, except that there appears to be a conspiracy of some sort. The whole thing is treated as the MacGuffin that it is.
The show's strength, however is in how its characters react to their frankly insane and increasingly hopeless situations.
Mercifully not pictured; their situation.
This is a show that's had very good characterizations...except for the main character, who seems to be a parody of a shonen protagonist. He's not at all lacking in courage or determination, but he's not particularly good at his job. The side charachters however, are fascinating and intelligently written. Several of them are quite likable too...
The moody direction and sense of trancendental dread of the early episodes of the season are not as well handled in the latter half, which relies on increasingly bizarre plot twists, and breakneck pacing only interrupted by an episode of fairly non-expository dialog that seems to have been placed there just to get to the requisite number of episodes.
Despite that and its gruesome visuals the series is still interesting enough that I hope they do another season. Its splatterpunk tendencies notwithstanding, the show manages to have some remarkably effective and even subtle horror. It has quite a bit to say about the importance of redemption, as well as the nature of true heroism....
...the 'last stand of Potato Girl' being particularly epic in that regard .
The show was wildly uneven and should not be watched while eating, but it remains surprisingly interesting.
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July 02, 2017
Just a Reminder That When You Break Out the Apple Pies on Tuesday...
(Language Warning)
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July 01, 2017
Oh.
There was an amazing amount of character development and exposition in this episode, and all of it was superbly written.
I understand now!
And I was all like..."Elf annoys the hell out of me. If she's the hook, screw this noise!"
Well.
Pete was right.
Elf Yamada is a gloriously whacked antagonist. I mean she is epically nutsoid in a most entertaining way. Now in any other show with someone like her that would be the alpha and omega of her characterization, but not in this show...
There was an amazing amount of character development and exposition in this episode, and all of it was superbly written.
I'm afraid I've gotta watch more of this delightful trainwreck.
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June 29, 2017
Alice and Zoroku Ends
Although, Alice and Zoroku is rather schizo in tone, the series leverages this trait quite well..
That was remarkably satisfying despite the fact that I really would like to see more of this show.
For one thing, it has the benefit of being completely unpredictable.
One never knows if an episode is going to be action adventure..
...adventures in floristry...
...fast food appreciation...
....haute cuisine appreciation...
...fantasy horror...
...or merely an excuse to trot out a new action figure....
...whatever genre it's dabbling in, Alice and Zoroku manages to be consistently good.
If you haven't watched it, you are wrong.
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June 22, 2017
Spoiler Warning!
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June 20, 2017
The Only Battle That Counts Is The Last One
And now for something refreshingly silly.
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April 30, 2017
FINALLY!
We get to see Yotsuba&! in an anime!
...from Eromanga Sensei episode 2 which introduces the girl in pink, a rival author who is amazingly annoying. Why, she's almost as annoying as Sagiri's class rep.
Thanks to Meguni here, the show is now on probation. That darn class rep managed to inject all the squick that I was so happy the pilot avoided into the show and then some....
To our heroes' credit, he is mortified. unfortunately, he is a teenage boy and blissfully unaware that in the age of the iPhone there is no expectation of privacy, especially if one's response to an annoying, pushy girl is awkwardly phrased.
On the plus side, he has now persuaded his sister to come out of her room occasionally. If only to do laundry.
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April 23, 2017
So....
You're supposed to be Princess Emillia, from Re:Zero, right?
I'm more interested in our protagonist's agent anyway.
What are we prattling on about?
Eromanga Sensei has a dumb as rocks premise, but it's extremely well done for what it is.
Our hero, Masamune Izume, is a light novel author...in high school, who, being recently orphaned, has to support his younger sister, Sagiri. Complicating this is the fact that, aside from the most fleeting glimpses, he's only seen her once, briefly, when she was adopted after HER parents died. You see, she's a hikikomori, presumably because there's been a lot of death in this tweener's short life.
Masamune has been particularly fortunate to land the services of a noted cheesecake illustrator on his latest novel series. He's never actually met the dude, but the artist helped to make his latest trilogy enough of a success that our hero is making a decent living...and loosing his anonymity, This is beginning to further complicate his already hectic life.
This being anime, things take a turn for the weird when series of conversations during and after a book signing and an obscure website set our hero on a path to discovering a shocking secret that will change his life forever!
Hijinks ensue.
This was a really solid first episode and except for one gratuitously tasteless gag at 14:29 this is really cute show, though I'm not sure how far they can go with this.
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April 22, 2017
Bad Engineering
From episode 11 of Tanya the Evil which has graphic violence and black humor to go with its poor role models.
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April 03, 2017
In Lieu of Any Actual Content
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March 28, 2017
Obligatory Pool Episode
The last episode of Interviews With Monster Girls was indeed a pool episode and broke new ground in prurience with this uncensored frontal shot of Kyoko without a stitch on her.
" I LAUGH at your guillotine!"
I hope they do more in the coming years as this series really was a gem.
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March 19, 2017
So...
So...the latest episode of Interviews With Monster Girls addresses the nagging concern that Takahashi has become not so much the girl's counselor, as the driver of their short-bus. The sinister assistant principal's true motivation is revealed and Sakie, though forced to improvise, nevertheless achieves an important milestone in the...umm, subtle and cunning machinations she is plotting in pursuit of her goal.
In contrast to episode 7 and especially episode 10 which hinted at a much "bigger" storyline, episode 11 is focused primarily on character development and nicely portrays the considerable personal growth the entire ensemble cast has gone through, including fairly minor characters.
This episode really touched on everything that has made this show so refreshing. The students in this show, both human and demihuman are very believably written and their actions are both charming and realistic.
Within limits.
I'm unsure how many episodes this series is, but if it is a 12 episode run then this was a solid and reasonably satisfying finale. Of course there is at least one more episode. However, there are indications that that will be a beach or pool episode and therefore probably fanservice pandering best ignored in the context of this nearly sublime little series*.
One thing that stands out above even the stellar chraracterizations of the students is that of Takahashi Sensei. Here we have a male lead who is not only a gentleman that behaves in a professional and mature manner. He's a remarkably macho guy as well. In addition to being a science teacher, he's a weightlifter, and characters comment on how much he's bulked up recently. In any other show that would be a character trait of a buffoon, but Takahashi is stoic, disciplined, kind, perceptive, intelligent, intellectual and strong in both body and character. He epitomizes the male virtues and in a thoroughly positive way. That is a rare and welcome thing in this day and age.
Interviews With Monstergirls has been low key but engaging. and a thoroughly enjoyable ride that stresses the importance of actively engaging life lest wonders pass us by.
No. Twitter is not "engaging."
If you've missed it, watch it.
If you've seen it, discuss it.
*
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March 11, 2017
The Means by Which Dulhallans Eat
...has yet to be addressed in this show, but despite that glaring omission, as of episode 7, Interviews With Monster Girls is mostly living up to the hype.
Well, in fairness, she could have been more clear.
"No. We understand how it gets into your mouth, it's the step after that which has us confused."
A biologist whose PHD thesis on demi-humans was shot down due to a lack of any preternatural people to study, abandons his research and gets a job as a high school biology teacher. Years later, he is surprised to learn that his school has enrolled a dulhallan, a vampire and a snow-woman. He begins his research anew arranging interviews with the fantastical beings and with the help of a delightfully goofball math teacher, councils his students and watches as they cope with all those little awkward moments every high school kid goes through.
Well, in fairness, she could have been more clear.This is a surprisingly well done story. Cute girls doing cute things in high school has been done a lot but this show has really good characterizations and despite the centrality of the monster-girls quirks....
"I will never really get used to that."
...they come off as some of the most believably characterized kids in a long time. Cast-wise it treads perilously close to harem territory, so it's very welcome that at least one of the schoolgirls has (maybe) a tentative romantic interest amongst the student body. It's even more welcome that the aforementioned delightfully goofball math teacher is around.
More welcome still in our decadent age is that this show actually stresses the virtuousness of men aspiring to arete' and thereby maintaining a stoic demeanor in stressful situations....
...and dealing with one's emotions in private so as not to bother others.
"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Did I mention the delightfully goofball math teacher?
Interviews With Monstergirls is, despite its premise, surprisingly down to earth and well written.
Now there are tentative indications as of episode 7 that there might be more to the story than a high school slice of life show.
That could be disastrous, or it could be awesome. At this point, even if they brought in giant robots that trapped everyone in a video game, I'd still watch it for a couple of episodes to see what they did because I'm that enamored of these characters.
I'm just gonna recommend this one.
UPDATE : 72 Minutes and 3 episodes later:
Well, what do you know.
Snerk...
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March 09, 2017
Flip Flappers: Belated Thoughts
Cute, whimsical, and thoughtful horror stories are kind of rare for some reason.
Flip Flappers is an exception, though after finally finishing the entire series, I find it still quite difficult to describe. The set-up is easy enough, Cocona is an honor student in high school and her ultimate goal is to...umm....be an honor student...
Life however, involves more than just studying for the test, and Cocona is trying to come to grips with the fact that the answer to "What career part do you intend to take?" Is not found in a book, or in any academic articles. Suddenly a crazy redhead named Papikka shows up with a comic relief robot and drags Cocona into a magical dimension to help them find...power crystals.
"Will this be on the test?"
Sadly, they don't keep the bunny ears, but they DO get time limited super powers accompanied by magical legware.
'dem stockings...
This is useful as well as stylistically fascinating because they do get into fights, with monsters as well as rivals.
Starting off as a (faux) magical girl show with an Alice in Wonderland vibe, it goes in a number of different directions to the point of seeming unfocused at times. However, there is a story here and the show is a surprisingly intelligent disquisition on the nature of identity, the blissful squalor of a utopia and the responsibility we all have for who and what we become.
The story does go to dark places as the characters explore their backstories
but the series, despite its breakneck pace and seemingly schizophrenic tone does come to a satisfying conclusion. In the process the series stays unpredictable and is never boring.
It is also high octane nightmare fuel. This show is genuinely terrifying at times,
and the story has more in common with Phillip K. Dick than Lewis Carrol.
It also gets bunny anatomy...wrong.
This was, however, a surprisingly enjoyable and thoughtful series and I recommend all 5 hours. It really was one of the best shows last year.
"We Rock!"
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February 18, 2017
RWBY Season 4 Ends
Well, we're two weeks late in our appraisal, but then, out of 12 full episodes, we managed no more than four other reviews this season as life's interventions caused a substantial delay in watching the show this time around.
Thankfully, it was worth the wait.
"See guys, it says here that we ROCK!"
At mid-season, RWBY's five disparate plotlines began to converge, but not as expected. Instead of having the groups all come together, the various plotlines converged in their tone, with 5 different flavors of existential dread being presented. These, counterintuitively, coincide with the show largely regaining its optimism.
Monty would be proud.
The next season looks to be the last and this finale tees it up perfectly. My only complaint at this point is that we've got 8 more months to wait for it.
UPDATE: Rereading the post, I should have mentioned that the ending of this season is not so much a finale, or a cliffhanger as a pause point in the story.
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January 08, 2017
Happy Dance is Engaged (UPDATED)
The first remake of Space Cruiser Yamato was absolutely excellent. Now it appears that they are indeed remaking the second series too.
UPDATE: Two other (shorter) videos are available.
Framegrabs (possibly spoilerish) below the fold...
more...
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January 02, 2017
OK, I Sit Corrected
In my last pompous disquisition upon this season of RWBY I prattled on for about 150 words about how the CGI fight animation/choreography was not as good as those of the earlier seasons.
Yeah.
About that...
It does appear that my argument has been invalidated by recent developments.
Monty would be proud of these people.
As for the non-FX aspects of this episode.
Wow.
This was not filler.
Every aspect of the three ring circus that was this episode was consequential and full of surprises. Even the quiet conversations, far removed from the cares of the world keep one on the edge of their seats.
I remain surprised at just how impressive that Weiss, of all people, has become.
This show still has five or six more episodes to screw everything up, but as of now RWBY remains first rate.
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December 27, 2016
RWBY Series 4 Mid-Season Thoughts
In the two months since our last review, RWBY has moved right along. The production values continue to be superb.
...some of which may not, strictly speaking, end up being vital to the plot.
The backgrounds, once akin to a '50s UPA cartoon, are now awe-inspiring at times and the animation is consistently top-notch.
I sure hope he doesn't...drop the map.
We've now had a bit of time with all four girls of the eponymous team (who are now on different continents).
It's kind of refreshing to see Ruby be the main character in her own show for a change. Most of the action has continued following Ruby, Jaune, Nora and Ren as they trudge across the wilderness on their way to a city where they expect to find answers to the conspiracy against them....unaware that that conspiracy is stalking them.
A few surprising facts have been revealed.
...some of which may not, strictly speaking, end up being vital to the plot.
This remains a remarkably solid show. It's hard to recommend to someone who hasn't seen it since the first and to a lesser extent the second season are of so much lower quality they are hard to watch now. However the first two seasons are short and the continual upgrades the show goes through are a joy to watch.
For those who stopped watching after...all that stuff...that happened at the end of last season, I do recommend that you set aside 72 minutes of your time to catch up on this season.
The one very minor criticism I think I touched on in an earlier post is that the fight scenes don't QUITE match the spectacular choreography that the late Monty Oum used to such effect early on. Compare this scene from season one which had a shoestring budget and a staff of about 15 that were just learning their craft to this one from last month, which enjoys a larger budget and a staff that has amassed tremendous experience. The second fight is not bad at all and the overall quality of the more recent episodes is absolutely spectacular, but despite the limited budget and resources, Monty Oum's choreography had a sense of dynamism and movement (and while physics is too strong a word, there was no jarring sense that it had been discarded). It is that last bit that his successors, despite their considerable skill, don't quite get yet. This is a very minor quibble but it goes to show that Oum was indeed a singular talent.
That most quibbly of quibbles aside; at the midway point this season is excellent. Despite the dark ending of last season and the frightful repercussions thereof, the show has managed to avoid becoming a bleak misery-fest and, due mainly to the pluck of the characters, it manages to maintain a basically upbeat tone until now.
We'll see if it can keep that up this weekend.
I certainly will be watching.
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