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medea10 · 2 months

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My Review of The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You

Well, I got a couple of open slots for the Fall 2023 anime season. I’ll choose this random series without looking into what it is and why it is. How bad could it possibly be?

#FamousLastWords

Between the time he was eight months old and the time he graduated from middle school, Rentaro Aijou has been turned down by “girls he likes” a grand total of 100 times. The night following his middle school graduation, Rentaro went to a shrine and prayed that when he enters high school, he will get a girlfriend. That’s when he meets God himself.

As one does in this occasion.

God tells Rentaro that he will not only get a girlfriend that is destined to be his true soulmate, he will have 100 girlfriends destined to be his true soulmate. Unless you are Genghis Khan or a main character on Tenchi Muyo, I call bullshit. God explains that the day Rentaro was born, he kinda dropped the ball while filling out paperwork. He accidentally wrote 100 soulmates instead of 1. To make things worse, if he turns down any of these soulmates, they’ll die suddenly. So, this is a matter of life and death for 100 girls.

On the very first day of high school, Rentaro bumps into two of these soulmates, Hakari Hanazono and Karane Inda. A pink-haired girl with big tits and a blonde tsundere. Of course, they are! All three are struck by cupid’s drunken, polygamist arrow. Them being a couple is kinda like with Girlfriend Girlfriend with the exception of them all not living together. Heads up, this is under the comedy genre. So, expect a lot of clumsy slapstick here! Well, Rentaro has met 2 of his soulmates. Throughout the series, he meets three other soulmates. A girl named Shizuka who communicates through lines from her favorite novel. Then there’s Kusuri who is a bit of an absent-minded scientist who occasionally transforms from curvy beauty to a Lolita. And then there’s Nano Eiai (pronounced A.I.) who is as monotone as it gets. If you name your kid that, what the hell do you expect?

Before I continue, I’m going to take a couple of shots in the dark here. I’m guessing that this series will only be 11-13 episodes long. Rentaro will only meet 5-13 girls in this span. And the chances of a sequel will be 15% chance.

BETWEEN THE SUB AND THE DUB: No lie, these were the words when it was announced this anime was getting an English dub. “This flaming garbage is getting an English dub?” Hmm, if Brina Palencia is allowed to do Crunchyroll dubs, I say she’s going to play Eiai. Only by the mere fact that she has a reputation for playing monotone girls. But that was something I used to see happen 15 years ago, I doubt it’s still true that Palencia plays nothing but monotone characters anymore. I gotta get with the times as Eiai is played by someone completely different. As for the sub, a mix of newer and well-known seiyuus. This is Wataru Katou’s second main role and seems to be relatively new. I thought he did a really good job as Rentaro. Okay, here’s the cast.

JAPANESE CAST: *Rentaro is played by Wataru Katou

*Hakari is played by Kaede Hondo (known for Iono on Pokemon Horizons, Sakura on Zombieland Saga, and Haruka on Love Live Nijigasaki)

*Karane is played by Miyu Tomita (known for Riko on Made in Abyss, Crim on Interspecies Reviewers, Miko on Kaguya-sama, and Ebisu on Dorohedoro)

*Shizuka is played by Maria Naganawa (known for Kanna on Miss Kobayashi, Plateletts on Cells at Work, and Komekko on Konosuba)

*Eiai is played by Asami Seto (known for Raphtalia on Shield Hero, Mai on Bunny Girl Senpai, CZ on Overlord, Miyoko on Food Wars, and Mado on Tokyo Ghoul)

*Kusuri is played by Ayaka Asai (known for Lisa on Fire Force)

ENGLISH CAST: *Rentaro is played by Travis Mullenix

*Hakari is played by Sarah Wiedenheft (known for Tohru on Miss Kobayashi, Power on Chainsaw Man, Lily on Zombieland Saga, Ruby on Love Live Sunshine, Ariel on Mushoku Tensei II, and Charmy on Black Clover)

*Karane is played by Ariel Graham (known for Tia on Overlord and Leivinia on Index III)

*Shizuka is played by Sara Ragsdale (known for Saikawa on Miss Kobayashi, Young Dabi on My Hero Academia, Saya on Dagashi Kashi)

*Eiai is played by Cassie Ewulu

*Kusuri is played by Lindsay Sheppard (known for Aria on Pokemon XY and Mia on Love Live Nijigasaki)

SHIPPING: After viewing the first episode, I just see Rentaro as one of those harmless anime perverts. He’s like Brock from Pokemon, he’s just going to ask the girl out and anything that happens afterwards, whatever. And for a while throughout the series, I’m inclined to agree with the same sentiment. I don’t recall seeing him get giddy about fondling Hakari’s breasts or anything dirty like that.

In fact, he tries to be chivalrous to the girls. Rentaro loves someone like Karane despite being the textbook definition of a tsundere. Rentaro helped Shizuka out of her shell and then-some. He showed Eiai that there’s more to life than just numbers. And Kusuri is no longer alone now that Rentaro is in her life. Although, things do get a little raunchy and go beyond holding hands. Rentaro doesn’t play favorites like the other modern harems, he loves all of his girlfriends the same and for some reason, the girlfriends just go along with Rentaro adding more girlfriends.

In short, every girl is best girl to him. But we have to admit that Hakari’s family has the upper-hand due to a couple of firsts. Hakari is the first girlfriend and the first to be a “bride”. And then Mama Hahari…um…Yeah, it’s best to assume that Hakari and Hahari got the upper-hand here.

WTF MOMENT: French-kissing Vice Principal.

That’s right. In an anime where Hakari has sick fantasies and we have a girl like Kusuri, who wears diapers and is an 18-year-old in the body of an 8-year-old, the Vice-Principal tainted everything.

That’s it. That’s what made my soul died.

ENDING: In harem animes, there’s bound to be any number of objections from friends and family members. Mostly family! Would your parents agree to you being in a polygamist relationship? Hakari is told by her mother to end it. Under normal circumstances, yes, that would be the case. But in this anime, Hakari would die. But of course, only Rentaro knows that factoid. If Hakari does die due to break-up, at least she went out in style. She was able to compete in a bouquet toss event that resulted in her and Rentaro dressed in wedding gear and having their pictures taken.

Hakari’s mother Hahari shuts her daughter up in her room in supreme lockdown. It’s a big house filled with security personnel, a guard dog, trip-laser security, and a cat. The cat’s there doing what cats do. Rentaro and the other girlfriends break in to try and save Hakari. With the help of everyone, Rentaro was able to make it to Hakari’s room. But all in vain as Hakari’s room was also attached to the security system and Rentaro was caught. We then learn about Hahari and why she’s being overprotective of her daughter. Hahari fell in love with a terminally-sick boy at age 13. Hahari decides to have his baby. She gives birth to Hakari and later the boy dies. Hahari later regrets the decision she made and doesn’t want Hakari to make a big mistake with a boy like she did.

And then Mama Hahari and Rentaro got the spark and AW SHIT, SHE’S ONE OF THE 100 GIRLFRIENDS!

Hahari shook it off and continued to test both Rentaro and Karane on this unordinary relationship with a lie detector. It showed that despite Karane’s severe tsundere attitude, she loves Rentaro. Rentaro is shown to love all of his girlfriends. And that Karane is somewhere in the A-cup range. But the silliness comes to a grinding halt when Hakari is on the ledge of her second-story bedroom window ready to end it all. Rentaro ends up saving her by falling off the ledge with her into the fountain. At least they’re not dead. Hahari gives up her grasp on Hakari and all seems to be forgiven with a hot bath, pajama party, and Rentaro possibly losing his virginity. Oh come on, I doubt that this anime would go so far as to…

OH, HOLY FUCK! THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED! RENTARO FUCKED HIS FIRST GIRLFRIEND’S MOTHER! HE’S A LITERAL MOTHER FUCKER!

And we go along with the final episode as if we did not see him fucking her brains out. The slumber party went along with usual and unusual moments including: playing cards, spying on Rentaro as he bathes, random acts of lesbianism, a spooky ghost in the window, and other silly shenanigans. We get more serious moments when we’ve got Hahari feel guilty as it feels like she’s betraying her first love (Hakari’s dead father). Rentaro being pure of heart accepts all of her baggage and seals it with a kiss. And then the ghost of Hahari’s first love (Hakari’s dead father) appears before Rentaro.

As one does! While he was quite defiant about Rentaro dating this guy’s first love and daughter, he sees Rentaro is a pure…wrong words to use about a guy who just lost his virginity to this guy’s baby-mama. Pure enough. Ghost dad approves and passes on. Now, I know what you’re thinking. Rentaro’s first 5 girlfriends are easy to see as they all go to the same school as him. How is Rentaro going to see his sixth, Mama Hahari? Simple. Hahari buys the school. Yeah, the episode ends with her announcing she bought the school. We also see four girls that Rentaro passes by that could possibly be girlfriends #7-11. Pfft. I’ve seen that happen before in season finales. Keijo had an ending like that where we saw all these new characters for one second and then the series never came back.

Okay, let’s see if what I said at the beginning of this review still stands.

*This series was 12 episodes long. I was correct that it was only going to last between 11 and 13. *By series end, Rentaro has officially gotten 6 girlfriends. Even if we add the 5 girls we saw at the end of episode 12, that would equal 11 girls. So, I was right about the number of girlfriends. *My 15% chance of a sequel guess was proven wrong immediately as this got the green light for a second season when the season one finale aired.

Shit, this series was something else. I can honestly say there were a lot of moments in 100 Girlfriends I would have never expected to happen. In a normal harem anime, there’d be a lot of fighting between the girls, the first girl might get a kiss, and the anime would end there so you would have to go to the manga to know what happens next. Or, wait nearly 30 years to see proof of a harem like with Tenchi Muyo. But we all must remember that we are in the 2020’s. If this fucking Goddamn decade has taught me anything, anime has gone above and beyond the norm here. We’re in the decade of Interspecies Reviewers and Redo of Healer!

This anime blew away everything that you’ve seen when it comes to harems. Rentaro has kissed every girl. He is loyal to all of his girlfriends and thensome. And unlike a lot of other harems, he lost his virginity by the season’s end and not to the first girl. I gotta give credit where credit is due in this department. And by the looks of the manga, Rentaro is still loved and quadrupled girl intake. Last I saw, he has over 20 girlfriends. The creator and artists are determined to make the 100 girlfriends thing happen whether the anime continues or not. I gotta respect that kind of tenacity. I am beyond curious to see how Rentaro can possibly handle over 20 girlfriends. So, I am definitely looking forward to a second season for this anime.

And if you want to see a harem done right for the 2020’s, get your ass to Crunchyroll and watch this series.

FINAL THOUGHT: If Rentaro never existed, this anime would be a Yuri anime starring these two. Prove me wrong.

#the 100 girlfriends who really really really really really love you #rentaro aijo #nano eiai #Kimi no Koto ga Daidaidaidaidaisuki na 100-nin no Kanojo #hakari hanazono #hahari hanazono #karane inda #kusuri yakuzen #shizuka yoshimoto

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zivazivc · 1 year

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there's this chinese cartoon that I was pretty obsessed with for a while last year and I recently discovered, while checking if the second season is out yet, that it got a dub and OF COURSE I needed to immediately check it out (also party cuz the subs I had before were really bad at times). Immediately a lot of characters sounded SO familiar and slowly I realized one of the two main characters is voiced by hunter's va, the landlady is voiced by the same person as makima from chainsaw man and the first episode "bad guy" is voiced by hawk moth's va LMAO!

I'm really bad at figuring out voice actors but those are literally the only three shows I'm watching at the moment

#anyway go check out link click #especially if you like unusual time travel concepts and sometimes cheesy shows that unashamedly pull on your heart strings #answered

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ladyloveandjustice · 1 year

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Fall 2022 Anime Overview: Five Anime!

I’ve done a lengthier review of Mobile Suit Gundam:The Witch from Mercury you can read here and now it’s time to tackle the five other anime I watched last season!

There’s some anime I chose to save for later, like Bocchi the Rock! (which I’m watching now and enjoying) and Raven of the Inner Palace, though I’ve heard great things about it and it’s a rare shoujosei adaptation so definitely go check it out! I might do a review of that when I do get to watch it, since it’s been overlooked this season with so many heavy hitters.

But onto what I did watch!

Akiba Maid War

This jaw-dropping genre pastiche takes the tropes of yakuza cinema and applies them to early 2000′s maid cafes in Akihabara locked in bloody war. Young Nagomi dreams of working in a maid cafe, only to find when she goes to work for the Oinky-Doink cafe (yes, they’re pig themed) that the cafe is heavily in debt and rival maid cafes are gunning to take it down. She’s protected by the deadly 35 year-old maid Ranko, who has a dark past.

Akiba Maid War is wild from start to finish. It starts up with shootout where Ranko kills a ton of maids perfectly timed to a cutesy maid cafe music performance and doesn’t let up from there. There’s a side-splitting bloody baseball episode, a deadly boxing match, and more. The comedy is endlessly entertaining- the way the maids continue to use their stupid animal puns even as they engage in yakuza style violence kills me- but it also has quite a few dark twists in line with its inspiration. This a show that could have easily come off as making fun of conventional femininity or indulged in tons of fanservice, but it doesn’t do either of those things. It’s just women in ridiculous outfits fighting each other and getting into ridiculous situations. It’s just utterly committed to its bit in a way that’s admirable.

I wouldn’t saw this a show with many big themes- though there’s the expected “can we stop the cycle of violence” one that comes up later. But there are some smaller things it’s very consistent about, and one of them is the message that if you want to be a cute, you are, and fuck anyone who says otherwise. Ranko is 35 (later 36) and is also utterly terrifying with a deep voice, but she repeatedly states that age has nothing to do with being cute or a maid, and when rival maids shit-talk her for being older than them they’re always framed as villains and shut down. The series coda especially hammers in it’s message of ‘women in their 30s are cute and can be whatever they want’. This shouldn’t be notable, but anime is well known for acting like any woman over 22 is a hideous old...maid, so it’s actually pretty refreshing. Ranko is fantastic.

If you can stomach exaggerated violence (I would call it an anime that revels in gore and the violence is cartoonish half the time, but lots of folks get shot), I definitely recommend this one. It’s a fun (and occasionally heartbreaking) ride. Definitely in my top 5 for the year.

Chainsaw Man

After being exploited by the yakuza ,the teenaged Denji gains the ability to turn into a ‘chainsaw devil” and is recruited by a shady government organization. He’s told that if he doesn’t work for them to kill other devils, he’ll be killed himself. Denji’s perfectly happy with this, because after a hard life he’s only interested in a warm bed, three meals a day, and his dream of touching a boob. Teamed up with a blood-crazed demon girl and babysat by a tired veteran demon hunter, Denji doesn’t realize the ominous machinations closing in on him...

I enjoyed this anime, and it inspired me to read the manga, which I enjoyed even more. It’s a fun time full of monsters and weirdos and there are themes of being exploited by your workplace and all that good stuff. But I’m not going to count it among my favorites, because honestly, the early Chainsaw Man material isn’t the strongest. Though a good deal of it is needed to build up what the manga does later, a lot of it feels meandering.

Denji is also a bit repetitively horny in the early chapter/episodes (though he at least hops the bar-in-hell most horny anime boys don’t manage to slither over and doesn’t violate consent). Unlike most horny anime guys, his immature attitude is a little understandable as he grew up isolated from other people with little education, this is all new to him. He does develop as a character (shocking twist, I know) as he slowly gains more of an understanding of how to approach the idea of sex in a way that works for him. But it takes 5 episodes to get him on that track. I don’t blame the anime for this like most. They definitely added a few sequences to stretch things out, but it does adapt roughly three chapters per episode, which isn’t a bad pace (and is pretty much needed to fit the first arcs into a 12 episode space). And if they cut anything out, fans would be throwing an even bigger fit than they already are. (It’s very funny to see the same fans that complain about the slow pacing turn around and complain about a small sequence cut out of the second episode. WHICH IS IT GUYS, THEY CAN’T DO BOTH).

I think Chainsaw Man fans need to acknowledge the early material just isn’t as as good as the later stuff, and being able to binge-read it in manga form just helps. The anime can’t do much about that, and it’s clearly a cinematic all-star production, with lovingly animated new ending credits and songs for each individual episode, so I don’t have a lot of sympathy for complaining fans when I had to endure Sailor Moon Crystal and a million yuri adaptations kneecapped by production woes. It’s a good anime doing what it can with the material it has, y’all try having real anime problems for once.

Rant aside, Chainsaw Man has a lot of good action, and importantly to me, a fun range of fucked up women. It’s also the rare anime that plays into the horror of an adult woman grooming a teenage boy. The anime does a good job of throwing up the red flags for Makima, yet she’s so good at what she does you almost fall for her alongside Denji. There’s also the loveable, feral demon-girl Power, who hits a lot of my adoration buttons. I do love that for once, the guy and girl teen leads of a shonen manga are truly just buddies, she and Denji have a fun vitriolic friendship. Because of the themes of the story, there’s an unlikely confluence most of the women Denji meets manipulating him by offering sexual favors, which is unfortunate if you read into it. But I honestly just think the author just likes terrible women, which hey, same. Overall, the anime got me to read the manga, and now that I’ve devoured it all, I’ll be happy to consume next season at whatever pace it goes. I just hope those unfortunate animators at Mappa get some rest.

Do it Yourself!

Teenager Yua Serufu (yes that’s a pun and it is bought up) is separated by the best friend who gets into a fancy tech school. Yua is endlessly clumsy, but when she runs into a cool girl, she becomes interested in joining the Do It Yourself! club and do some carpentry and crafting. The club quickly grows, but can Yua lure her estranged bff into the fold?

This is just a cute show with cute animation about girls working with power tools. It’s relaxing and sweet and there’s not much else to say about it. It’s set five minutes into the future, but it did handle it’s themes of tech vs analogue well, with the ultimate message being “now that we have all this cool tech, we should focus on doing what we want, like working with our hands”, which is nice in these troubled times. The characters are very archetypal- Yua’s friend is a sympathetic tsundere, there’s a girl who says ‘nya’ a lot, etc. It’s a little noticeable that the American exchange student is way more fleshed out than the South-Asian one (we don’t even get her country of origin stated in the show) and there’s a weird moment with the little robot watching the girls bathing. Other than that, not much to warn for. It’s a sweet show, but it likely won’t set your world on fire.

Spy x Family Season 2

More Spy x Family, and it continues to be a lot of fun! I enjoyed season 1 a lot, but unfortunately this season covers some of the weaker material in the manga, where the story seemed to be spinning its wheels with a lot of one shots. Because of how the seasons are separated, it’s also incredibly noticeable how underutilized Yor (assassin mom) is in this one and how little we know about her job. Honestly, I don’t think that’s entirely down to sexism or anything, I wonder if the writer was just struggling with how to make readers root for Yor hunting down and killing a man- it’s a pretty big ask for that to be the main focus of an arc in a family-friendly comedy. But fortunately, he does eventually figure it out, and there’s a good Yor arc full of strong material coming up right where this season cuts off, so look forward to that.

For some reason, they also cut out one of my favorite sidestory chapters with Yor. Considering that they adapted all the other sidestories and even added material this season, I wonder if they’re just saving it for the next one? They better be. Anyway, Anya’s still great, there’s a cute dog, it’s still a fun anime, but not as strong as the first season. Fortunately, there’s good stuff coming up.

Mob Psycho 100 Season 3

It’s the final season of Mob Psycho! This is a quieter season than Season 2, but the show’s themes of identity and accepting oneself remain strong. Episode 6 made me emotional about a character I’d never had any emotions about before, there’s a cute little mini-arc focusing on everyone’s favorite weird alien-obsessed girl and the finale is a perfect cap on both Mob and Reigen’s development. It’s a beautiful culmination of all the growth we’ve seen in the relationship that’s the heart of the show. I appreciated that, as small as they were, we got some glimpses of the real, grounded girl that exists behind Mob’s idolization of his crush Tsubomi. It was a nice touch that she lost her sparkly anime eyes and she got plainer ones like the other characters as it was impressed on us she doesn’t exist on a pedestal. It’s just all around solid material. I’ll miss this show a lot.

#akiba maid war #mob psycho 100 #chainsaw man #do it yourself #do it yourself!#spy x family #anime overview #fall 2022 anime #my reviews #recs

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canmom · 1 year

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seasonal animes: tengoku daimakyou 05-07

caught up on Tengoku Daimakyou (to S01E07) and Oshi no Ko (S01E05).

Tengoku Daimakyou continues to be great, in all the ways it was at the outset. It’s kind of crazy. Gorgeously animated, and full of life and character. Like, it wouldn’t look bad in a movie and they’re somehow pulling it off for a full cour of TV.

Not only have Production I.G. still got it, but it even feels like an advancement - there’s none of the very reserved stiffness that I kind of associate with TV shows like GitS:SAC or Seirei no Moribito, it’s constantly lively. The lively way it moves, and the slightly rounded character design, puts me in mind of Dennou Coil, but with a strong dash of the old realist movement mixed in.

In many ways I have the same things to say about these three episodes as I did the first four. It’s beautiful. The background paintings wonderfully depict an overgrown post-apocalypse. The action is well-choreographed and weighty. The individual episode scenarios are strong, and the unfolding mystery is intriguing. Weilin Zhang’s OP is a treat.

Sexuality is a huge theme of this series, and it’s worth spending a minute on how they play it. I spoke previously about the MC who at first glance seems to be a trans man but is actually a wacky sci-fi brain transplant patient. They’re continuing to play up the sexual tension between the two MCs hard, mostly for antics and escapades (episode 6 in particular); this is in turn used as a symbol of Kiruko struggling to decide who to be, caught between male and female behaviour codes.

Which ends up being interesting; it’s not a 1:1 map to like, the Specific Trans Experience but it is full of resonances. You could read it as a trans guy thing (he’s literally a guy with a body that everyone reads as female) but there’s also aspects of a trans girl thing (renegotiating the whole complicated mess we call ‘socialisation’). A good scifi device is a probe to give us a different angle on the world... and while I don’t want to oversell it, it does lead a fun dynamic between the MCs once you calibrate yourself to what it’s going for. (The level of horniness is broadly comparable to Chainsaw Man - jokes about boners and boob touching, a few almost-sex scenes.)

And the portrayal of awkward intimacy generally feels quite warm and genuine - it’s a far cry from whatever the hell was happening in that one nurse scene in GitS:SAC S2. The current generation of animators at I.G. are really onto something. In general it does a very good job of conveying emotion - take for example the scene where Kiruko returns to the house and finds Maru missing in Episode 5, you can really feel her sense of rising panic.

It’s also delivering very well on the horror front. Episode 7, in which our MCs walk into a conflict between a group of primmies and a transhumanist cult, seamlessly slips into a hallucination sequence where Kiruko is bitten apart by monsters. At first I was wondering if they were really going to inflict a permanent injury on the MC, especially since the buildup had a lot of talk of prosthetic limbs. They didn’t go there in the end, but it’s good that they’re finding ways to still make the monsters threatening. It’s also very good at shifting registers; in episode 6 the MCs fight a bear, and it does a fine job of telling a small story arc within the battle, advancing the MCs’ relationship, and dancing between action and comedy (when it turns out not to be a bear monster but a regular bear).

Of course, there’s also the creepy school for psychic children, who are also dealing with the struggles of puberty and first relationships etc. This is mainly a B plot in the most recent episodes, although I’m sure the focus will swing back there soon. One thing I like about the approach taken here is that the adults running the facility appear to genuinely care for the children, and they don’t seem to know everything that’s going on either. When one of the children dies they’re hit with grief (and guilt!) as much as the kids; when they find a weird nonflammable organ inside them after cremation, they’re shocked, not going ‘all according to keikaku’. It feels like a situation that’s out of control despite all the fancy technology.

Evil experiments on children is a familiar subject for anime of course, and the parent-figure who does horrible experiments on their wards while still performing affection a familiar figure within that. But while the adults here are definitely up to no good, their attitudes and motivations seem a bit less out there than your average evil science dad. Even so, the storyboarding effectively accentuates the prison-like aspect of the school; particularly effective is a sequence (screenshotted above) where the dead child is solemnly wheeled away from the other children, and taken behind the doors where they are not allowed to go; the only one who can pass through that door is dead.

Of recent anime, Mappa’s Chainsaw Man seems like a relevant point of comparison, which also went for a constantly moving sense of cinematic realism, leaning on young webgen animators for the flashy scenes. I had a great time with Chainsaw Man but it was uneven - sometimes truly great, other times it felt like it was trying a little too hard to show off with technical flexes, and not every beat landed. Tengoku Daimakyou wasn’t so hyped, so it doesn’t have as much to live up to, but its style feels a bit better integrated overall.

I also have to praise the compositing! The colours are generally really well chosen, the right level of saturation and contrast, the digital effects (typically a subtle bloom) aren’t overbearing the way they were so often in the 2010s. (Incidentally, there seems to be minimal 3DCG in this show). The ‘look’ of 2020s anime is extremely varied of course, but in some ways it feels like a return of a lot of things I really liked in 90s anime.

All in all, this is really living up to the promise set when I first thought “damn that was a cool trailer”. I hope they get to continue it for more, but either way I think I’ll pick up the manga once the series is done, it’s got its hooks in me hehe

#tengoku daimakyou #tengoku daimakyou spoilers #anime #heavenly delusion #heavenly delusion spoilers #animation

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frogiwi · 21 hours

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HELLO AGAIN TOP 5 ANIME OPS AND EDS FROM YOU AS WELL PLEASE

HELLO CRAB thanks to scrolling through my OST playlist and messaging what i'd include as i went, this shouldn't require as much thought now LOL

extremely long so proceed under the readmore!

OPs:

re:re: by asian kung-fu generation - erased

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i mean. this op ruined my life. erased was such a beautiful show that took me on a journey i wasn't expecting and it's my favorite time travel related story ever. i was so moved by it and i was devastated when the op changed because of [spoilers]. the show has a crazy ending but it was thrilling and parts of it were the most anxious i can recall an anime ever making me. what a gift honestly this op makes me tear up whenever i hear it

2. bloody stream by coda - jojo part 2 ed

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OK so i was torn between this, sono chi no kioku, and fighting gold, but ultimately this won bc part 2 is my favorite of the three and i love and miss the cgi openings so much so fighting gold's visuals got disqualified. i fucking LOVE this op i linked the version with the extra sound effects but the visuals are all just so fun and i love joseph and caesar so much and coda is brilliant and this song is just a fucking party and FUCK YEAH

3. cry baby by offical hige dandism - tokyo revengers op 1

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oh my god i almost forgot to put this one in. i had bnha op 2 peace sign in this list at first and then i was like I FORGOR. anyways cry baby is an incredible fucking op that was part of why i got hooked to tokyo revengers. i have a lot of complicated feelings about this series but overall it still means a lot to me and has been the most involved i've been in a fandom, and it is definitely special to me even after everything. i think this song has a wonderful energy to it that gives me such a strong impression of takemichi and toman and the whole theme of fighting on for a brighter future and the visuals are simple but extremely effective and beautiful. they do a great job at portraying takemichi's struggles. i love u crybaby hero. i love this song dearly

4. hikari are by burnout syndromes - haikyuu op 5 (shiratorizawa arc)

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this one is here for a lot of reasons. this arc is one of my favorite parts of haikyuu because of what it means for karasuno to win and go to nationals, but also for my fav character tsukki to finally have his Moment where he gets hooked on volleyball by being able to block ushijima,,, AND the shot of ushijima pushing hinata and tsukki down when the karasuno senpais daichi, asahi, and tanaka come to their rescue and support them to push ushijima back.... there's just so much significance to this season AND in terms of this op itself, the song is so beautiful and the visual where hinata jumps and turns into the crow diving makes me tear up every time (and did again when i rewatched it for this kgjsdg) and i just. i really love it a lot

5. jikai yokoku by tatsuya kitani - sentai daishikkaku

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i too am going to include this bc omfg what a fucking banger of a song and the visuals are incredible. both the lyrics and the visuals convey the repeating cycle fighter d is in and his struggle to break free and fight back and i LOVE the parts of the song sung in children's voices because it ties even more into the sentai theme and the words themselves are JUST. ITS SO GOOD WATCH SENTAI DAISHIKKAKU IM SO GLAD I SUCCUMBED TO CRAB'S PROPAGANDA

EDs:

first death by tk from ling tosite sigure - chainsaw man ed 8

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this ending ruined my fucking life. ok so i read chainsaw man over a year before the anime aired and like it was good but it was confusing and so i didn't think about it much after that. BUT THE ANIME DID SUCH AN INCREDIBLE JOB i suddenly cared about it so much. the effort that was put into creating a different ed for each episode is remarkable and they're literally all incredible songs with incredible animation and i truly would put all of them on this list. but first death wins because episode 8 ruined me and then this ed singlehandedly made me fall in love with himeno and akihime. i suddenly saw the beauty and tragedy in their relationship and codependency and i was enamored by how the last few episodes of the anime felt like a love letter to himeno. she deserves it. ed 9 (deep down by aimer) is also beloved but this one makes me crazy. seeing aki and himeno at the gravesite where they met, and sharing a smoke, and fighting together perfectly coordinated, and aki at the gravesite alone after her death.... it's so cinematic and a story on it's own and it's just so lovely. i think the song is also very csm and the energy of it is unmatched

2. el canto del colibri by mabanua - megalobox op 2

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i was pretty torn as to whether to put the first op, kakatte koi yo by NakamuraEmi, or this one, but i ultimately went with this one because it is a true reflection of the core of this series and i think it being in spanish is a great bridge to the characters of season 2 (it is amazing to watch something where brown characters aren't of an ambiguous minority race; the culture is deeply intrinsic to the themes of this season and it's so special). i don't want to get too in detail and spoil anything but i went into megalobox expecting a regular sports anime and got out of it so much more than that, and it truly touched me. i listen to the entire ost by mabanua often, and it comforts me a lot.

3. datte atashi no hero by LiSA - bnha ed 3

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ok this one is just the best bnha ending ever and the official bakudeku anthem of all time, and the fantasy au being animated will NEVER be forgotten. this song is such a joy to listen to and it being about deku's feelings toward bakugou is truly amazing. i love all the details in the visuals and i would love to see more eds like this honestly where the characters are just put into a little AU. it's just really good!!!

4. hunting for your dream by galneryus - hxh ed 2 (yorknew arc)

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ok i had to find a version of this with the lead in during the last few moments of the episode bc that was always badass. anyways yorknew arc changed me and i became a deranged beast about chrollo and chrollopika for months. hands down my favorite part of hxh, and i just love the energy of this ed. there is nothing really special about the visuals but i still rly love when it goes through all the phantom troupe members and mostly i am just fond of the memories of this time

5. future fish by style five - free ed 2

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dammit ok i put the first ed splash free here at first but i rewatched them both and changed my mind. i watched free rly late compared to like everyone else (2019 i think???) but oh my god i would put every ed on here LOL especially this one and splash free. i love the outfits and "story" of splash free but this one is even MORE fun with all the different profession outfits and the guys just being sillygoofy and oh my god its so cute i miss them so much I NEED TO REWATCH FREE RIGHT NOW

(i have to give honorary number 6 to hyori ittai by yuzu (hxh ed 5) because even tho chimera ant arc was difficult to get through at times, i love this song a lot and the visuals of the gungi pieces especially with gon and killua fuck me up. the ending of this arc with meruem and komugi destroyed me and i cried like a fucking baby)

#THANKS CRAB THIS WAS SO FUN I LOVE GOING THROUGH MY OST PLAYLIST #there is just so much i love dearly #i might say honorary number 6 op is paradise by rude-a from sk8 bc its just SUCH great visuals and i love the song a lot too #even if my feelings about sk8 are deeply complicated gkjsdhg

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colorisbyshe · 9 days

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i think the funniest thing about how mappa dragged out the yuri on ice movie and teased fans with it for 8 years is… they didn’t even do it as a way to get fans to pay for stupid merch

like, once every three years they’d release a sports jacket or some shit, but overall… they weren’t baiting fans into spending more money???

like there was literally no reason to keep this going for eight years

they lost money not releasing this movie… so even the “oh, mappa wasn’t receiving the lions share of the money from YOI, that went to other companies” doesn’t make sense cause they spent 8 years developing this film…. like we got the trailer and statements from people working on it… we know they hired actual olympians for choreography… they spent thousands of dollars on this

for literally nothin… for one merch drop of an athletic jacket and idk a pop up event in japan

they didn’t need to keep the movie going to do that

they could’ve canceled this when jjk season 1 was kicking their ass… or just not canceled this and idk… not done a new opening animation for every episode of chainsaw man

#sorry i woke up mad #ate lunch mad #opened twitter and saw my fyp page and got mad

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telltaletypist · 1 year

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just listened to an anime podcast sampling the new shows out this season and when one of them got to chainsaw man she was just like "yeah so there's only three episodes out right now but general premise is they fight demons and wear cool suits and hang out presumably forever bc it's a shounen and yeah it's a good time" and i've never in my life had a bigger oh sweet summer child moment

#chainsaw man

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ridley-was-a-cat · 1 year

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Fall 2022 Anime Roundup

Somehow yet another season has completed, and this one was a doozy. Not only were there multiple sequels to major franchises like Mob Psycho and My Hero Academia, we got a sequel to Bleach 10+ years after the last season ended. On top of that, there was the highly anticipated debut season of Chainsaw Man, and four adaptations of shoujosei works, which is more than we usually get in an entire year. There was just a ton of stuff on offer this season, and almost all of it was good.

Completed

Anime of the Season: Mob Psycho 100 III

In a season as packed as this one, choosing a favorite was no easy task, and I went back and forth between this and Raven of the Inner Palace. As good as they both were, I'm going to have to give this the edge for pairing its moving story about adolescent turbulence with an absolute spectacle of art and animation. I really can't say enough good things about how Mob steadfastly rejects violence or subjugation as displays of strength or power. The show never gets preachy about it, Mob just sees people's appeals to use his power in destructive ways as pointless and unappealing. ONE said that he set out to write something kind when he wrote Mob Psycho, and I have to say that he definitely succeeded in writing one of the best examples I've seen of positive, non-toxic masculinity. 9/10

First Runner Up: Raven of the Inner Palace

I didn't really know what to expect when I added this to my schedule for the season, and basically only watched it because it had a shoujo label, and I reflexively support shoujosei anime. What I ended up with was a fantastic drama that used one to two episode-long vignettes about various people and spirits around the imperial court to tell a larger story about who the main characters are, and how the events of the past affect them today. The slow development of the relationship between the Raven Consort and the Emperor was extremely satisfying to watch, as was seeing her learn to open up to the people around her. Many of the characters' backstories were tragic or traumatic, and the show handled them with the right amount of thoughtfulness. 9/10

Second Runner Up: Akiba Maid War

I nearly dropped this halfway through the first episode thinking that it was going to be just another P.A.Works original about humbling an idealistic young woman at her first job, and then a gang war broke out. A committed and affectionate parody of gangster movies with enough heart to avoid becoming a cheap joke. 8/10

Bocchi the Rock! - I didn't plan to watch this because the manga runs in one of those lolicon magazines that skeeve me out, but luckily the hype got to me, and I didn't miss out on this spectacularly animated and directed comedy about an introverted girl chasing her rock and roll dreams. 8/10

I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss - This tried to squeeze three light novel volumes into twelve episodes, making episodes 4, 8, and 12 into arc-concluding speed runs, but our villainess was so charmingly spunky and her demon lord boo was so damn fine that I was having too much fun to care about its flaws. 8/10

Spy x Family Part 2 - I kept waiting for the plot to kick back in before finally accepting that this series apparently is more of an episodic comedy than the first cour let on, but it's still plenty entertaining. 8/10

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War - I liked, but didn't love, Bleach's original run, and this sequel retains many of the story writing traits I didn't care for, but the visuals got a major upgrade, everyone is smoking hot, and they played "Number One" at the end of the last episode, so I can't help but feel the hype. 8/10

Chainsaw Man - I can both see how skillfully directed and animated this was, and how the characters and story would be appealing to a lot of people, while also disliking the decision to mimic live-action movies, and acknowledging that this story full of misery is just not for me. 7/10

Do It Yourself!! - A cute girls doing cute things show that broke through my exhaustion with the genre by having an unusual activity like carpentry, and mixing it with distinctive character designs and lively animation. 7/10

The Little Lies We All Tell - The visuals for this didn't appeal to me so I didn't pick it up until the season was almost over, but it ended up being a really charming little comedy about four friends with bizarre secrets. 7/10

My Master Has No Tail - The rakugo performances left a little to be desired, but the character interactions in this light comedy about a tanuki taking up rakugo in Meiji era Osaka kept things entertaining. 7/10

Reincarnated as a Sword - If this wasn't a light novel adaptation, and it didn't have so much monologuing from the sword, blah visuals, or mediocre shot composition, this would make a pretty fun story despite the goofy sounding concept. 6/10

Bibliophile Princess - I've read the manga adaptation, so I was really looking forward to this, but some combination of poor animation, questionable story adaptation choices, and an annoying tendency to rehash the same conflict made this a bit of a slog to finish. 6/10

Ongoing

Golden Kamuy S4 - I'm definitely looking forward to watching this when it comes back from hiatus in the spring, as the action was really starting to get interesting, with our competing gangs of charismatic scoundrels about to get back on their bullshit. 8/10

IDOLiSH7 Third BEAT! Part 2 - This part continues with the corporate drama instigated by the extremely hateable villain, while completing Trigger's transformation from antagonist to loveable underdog, and giving some very satisfying character development moments. Looking forward to the concluding four episodes in February. 8/10

One Piece - While I'm definitely still enjoying myself, and this really is the best One Piece has looked during its run, I'm kind of ready to be done with Wano already. 8/10

Play It Cool, Guys - You've heard of cute girls doing cute things, now get ready for the new hotness: cute guys doing airhead things. Just pure, unadulterated fluff that brightens my day. 8/10

My Hero Academia S6 - On the one hand, this was kind of an exhausting anime season for seeing the good guys get the stuffing beat out of them, but on the other hand, seeing Mirko rip a monster's head off with her thighs was some peak content. 7/10

Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun S3 - This season still has most of its charm, and I still love all the characters, but this contest arc is really dragging. 7/10

Dropped

The Eminence in Shadow - This was sold to me as a satirical take on power fantasy isekai, but it was playing all the tropes pretty straight, and the atrocious fanservice in episode 10 made me decide I had better things to do. 6/10

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celestielswp · 6 months

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✧･ﾟ— CHAINSAW MAN SEASON ONE POWER GIF MASTERLIST

below the cut you'll find a masterlist of all the gifpacks i have created for POWER and her appearances in CHAINSAW MAN SEASON ONE

each of these are made by scratch by me so please do not repost into gifsets/gif hunts or claim them to be your own. you can crop these for icons, or use them for crackships and edits but you MUST GIVE ME CREDIT IF YOU POST THEM PUBLICLY; please also like and reblog!

(click the title to be taken to my gif masterlist!)

EPISODE ONE

EPISODE TWO, PART ONE

EPISODE TWO, PART TWO

EPISODE THREE, PART ONE

EPISODE THREE, PART TWO

EPISODE THREE, PART THREE

EPISODE FOUR, PART ONE

EPISODE FOUR, PART TWO

EPISODE FIVE, PART ONE

EPISODE FIVE, PART TWO

EPISODE SIX

EPISODE SEVEN

EPISODE EIGHT

EPISODE NINE

EPISODE TEN, PART ONE

EPISODE TEN, PART TWO

EPISODE ELEVEN

EPISODE TWELVE

#gif hunt #gif pack #gifset #gifs #chainsaw man gifs #chainsaw man #chainsaw man power #csm #csm gif #csm gifpack #csm gifs #csm power #chainsaw man power gif #power #power gif #chainsaw man season one gif #chainsaw man season one #chainsaw man season one power #chainsaw man season one power gif

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beneaththetangles · 1 year

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It literally took a global pandemic to slow down the rapid growth of anime’s popularity. But the industry has surged back, and after a year during which studios were playing catch-up, 2022 felt like it was largely business as usual and maybe better than that, with dozens of new series released each season, new studios jumping into the fray (a trend that will really take off in 2023), and more anime movies than ever making their way to international release.

This diversity and expansiveness are reflected in our Best of 2022 anime list, which includes continuing series—titles that were notable heading into the year—but is mainly filled with anime that unexpectedly delighted. They feature an introverted rocker, an insomniac who wants to become a vampire, a famous figure from the Three Kingdoms reincarnated to become a young woman’s musical advisor, and teenage assassins who run a coffee shop. And yes, these series were every bit as fun as they sound—and for reasons we mention below, even more wildly inventive, deeply engaging, and personally meaningful than they have any right to be.

Here they are, in alphabetical order (because any other order is too hard to decide!):

BELLE • Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War • Bocchi the Rock! • Call of the Night • Chainsaw Man • Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These S3 • Lycoris Recoil • Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun • SPY x FAMILY • Ya Boy Kongming!

– Honorable Mention –

BELLE

What do you do as a parent when you look out at the world and see a harsh reality lying in wait for your painfully shy young child? Well, if you’re Mamoru Hosoda, you make a film to fill her with courage, hope, and the joy of being alive at such a time as this. You make BELLE. This masterful reworking of the classic fairy tale transforms a simple (and unrealistic) romance into a heartrendingly raw, yet gently epiphanic reflection on loss, fear, and coming of age in an unsafe world. At the heart of Hosoda’s redemptive story—the magic that breaks the curse, if you will—is not romantic love but something ever more vital in this current climate: compassion. Through her vocaloid-like online life as fearless songstress Belle, the heroine Suzu learns to extend this vital grace to both others and herself, and to receive it from those closest to her as well. In this way, BELLE celebrates the capacity of social media to do good and not only harm, while modeling how exactly to live with compassion, a valuable message in an era seemingly dominated by cancel culture. This may be a retelling of ‘a tale as old as time,’ but this is the one adaptation that will, in my books at least, truly stand the test of time—and future generations will be better for it. Thank you, Hosoda. ~ claire

Streaming on HBO Max.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Arc

One of the most epic shonen anime series of all time has finally begun its journey to completion. The previous seasons of the anime ended pretty poorly, full of filler that couldn’t compare to the Arrancar and Aizen arcs. Manga readers will not be disappointed with this final arc adaptation, though! Every episode is a fun ride, full of intense battles that push the captains of the Gotei 13 to their limits. Many long-standing questions are finally answered, as the series prepares for what is proving to be a satisfying conclusion. Ichigo and his allies are pitted against some of the most fearsome enemies in the entire run of the franchise, falling short again and again against the insurmountable power that is Yhwach and his crew. Although the heroes pull out all their best attacks, they cannot avoid taking severe injuries, and not everyone will make it to the end of the season, or in some cases, not even past the first few episodes! The animation by Studio Pierrot is up there with the best, though be warned that it is more violent than previous seasons, so keep that in mind if you are watching with little ones or sensitive viewers. Overall, the action and suspense of this final arc make waiting for Mondays a real challenge, which is a very fitting end to such a blockbuster series! ~ Samuru

Streaming on Hulu.

Bocchi the Rock!

The genius of Bocchi the Rock! is the fact that it’s not afraid to defy slice-of-life conventions to tell the story that it wants to tell. A different show about a high school girl with social anxiety joining a band might shy away from the comedy in favor of wholesome friendship moments and satisfying character arcs. But Bocchi! wants to have its cake and eat it too. And it pulls it off. Interspersed with reflective ponderings on anxiety, self-talk, and loneliness are zany sequences where the pressures of social life cause Hitori to morph into famous paintings, lose corporeal form altogether, or just keel over and die. All this works because the authors love Hitori, even as they poke fun at her social anxiety-induced antics. It works because they understand her struggle to connect with others, even as she deeply desires that connection. It works because they track her growth, slow but steady, as she steps out and discovers what life in community looks like. Add on a lovely main cast and some seriously good insert songs, and we have a show that will be treasured long after the curtains fall. Hilarious yet sensitive, imaginative yet grounded, niche yet relatable, Bocchi the Rock! does it all. Producer Shouta Umehara was aiming for “the pinnacle of slice-of-life anime,” and he definitely hit the bullseye. ~ sleepminusminus

Streaming on Crunchyroll.

Call of the Night

Call of the Night is one of those shows that does an excellent job of capturing emotions and sparking a relatable tone with the audience. From the moment where Ko, the insomniac teenage protagonist, steps out into the night, in awe and amazement at the new world that surrounds him, to the moment he meets the vampire girl Nazuna, who represents the allure and enticement of nightlife and the seductive temptation of being in a world normally occupied by adults—the series is evocative and a little nostalgic too. The outstanding animation quality really captures the feel of being on the streets of a major metropolitan area in the twilight hours. Also, the OP, “Daten” is an absolute bop and held the crown of Best Anime OP during its entire run…until a certain show about a certain dude with a hardware issue came along. While it doesn’t look like we’ll be getting a second season of this one, you owe it to yourself to check it out and instantly get transported to that time when, as a youth on the cusp of adulthood, you too first discovered the awe-inspiring sights and sounds of the night. ~ Josh

Streaming on HiDIVE.

Chainsaw Man

One of the most hyped anime of the year, Chainsaw Man is an example of what happens when the powers that be say, “Okay, here’s the source material and the company credit card. Give us a 13-episode series, make it look pretty, and money is no object.” And they succeeded beyond their wildest imagination. What makes this the best anime in 2022? Simple. No really. That’s the answer. It’s simple. The story of a boy who bonds with a demon and produces chainsaws from his body to defeat other demons is simple enough for anyone to comprehend (“simple” when it comes to anime that is). Still, the characters, combined with the fantastic animation, push this narrative into “must-see” territory, especially regarding our saw-tooth bro Denji. It’s downright refreshing to have a protagonist that doesn’t have any grandiose delusions of wanting to be a superhero and fight for something silly like saving the world. Denji wants to be comfortable and live a good life with someone to take care of him, which is something that we can all relate to. I’ll be the first to say that Chainsaw Man has a lot that can turn people away—the levels of violence and sexuality might be too much for some people, but don’t let that turn you away. Every blood splatter and sexually charged moment is not done just for the heck of it—there is a rhyme and reason for it to be there! Finally, let’s talk about this dub. Can we please give Ryan Colt Levy and Sarah Wiedenheft their flowers? Ryan as Denji is so freaking spot on, I seriously can’t hear anyone else in the role. And Sarah as Power is just downright prodigious! This is a show you owe it to yourself to watch in both languages. ~ Josh

Streaming on Crunchyroll.

Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These S3

The remake of this classic space opera lives up to the high standard set by its revered 1988 predecessor, bringing updated animation and an excellent English dub to help introduce Tanaka Yoshiki’s saga to a new generation. While the LOGH series is not completely flawless, it achieves untouched heights when the story focuses on its complex political drama and meditations on the cyclical nature of human history. This season reaches one of those high points as Admiral Yang Wen-li finds himself struggling with the moral dilemma posed by his incredible naval victories: are they truly defending democracy or simply saving a corrupt government and apathetic citizenry from their own foolishness? This philosophical drama plays out against a backdrop of Death Star VS Death Star battles as the Galactic Empire conducts a major campaign against the most critical defensive strongpoint of the Free Planets Alliance. Whether you’re a longtime fan of the original Legend of the Galactic Heroes or a complete newbie debating whether or not to take the plunge on this famous but intimidating science fiction epic, get in on Die Neue These. ~ WacOtaku

Streaming on Crunchyroll.

Takina being dragged into the Vortex of Chaos Chisato

Lycoris Recoil

LycoReco is the very embodiment of something that shouldn’t work but, in complete contravention of all logic, really, really does. (A bit like black matter, the placebo effect, or bulldogs.) With enough twists and turns to make a corkscrew blush, and a production history that can at best be described as unconventional, this zany combo of workplace slice-of-life and sci-fi spy thriller is fantastically original. And chaotic. Did I mention the chaos? Plot lines duck and weave like a Dempsey roll and loose ends stick out willy-nilly, but all this serves only to heighten the charm, dynamism, and pure delight of watching the adventures of these teenage undercover government assassins dole out justice while forming fast friendships, devising the most mountainous chocolatey desserts known to Instagram, solving mind-boggling conspiracies, and reforming a genius child hacker. Maybe. At first, the cast seems to slot neatly into familiar tropes, yet as the series progresses (ahem, by episode two), they somehow manage to explode such conventions effortlessly. Chisato and Takina, as the cheerful, bubbly extrovert and cool, self-possessed introvert, single-handedly breathe new life into the most predictable pairing formula known to anime—and steal our hearts in the process. If this is what is possible with anime original series, then we need more of it. A lot more. Hats off to A-1 for taking the risk and doing so with such verve! ~ claire

Streaming on Crunchyroll.

I’m DONE with android deaths

Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun

Surely season two of Made in Abyss couldn’t top the horror and despair of season one and its movie sequel, could it? Yes, actually, it could and it did, in all its face-melting, body-horror glory. But if that’s all Made in Abyss was about, I’d simply file it under “splatter film” and avoid the series for all eternity. No, what makes The Golden City of the Scorching Sun and its predecessors so special, apart from being set in a world wholly unlike anything depicted before, are the glimmers of hope it provides when they are needed most. The series perseveres in finding hope in the most unlikely places: when an impossible choice must be made involving a loved one, when the regrets from past misdeeds threaten to drown, when the road feels too long and difficult to follow. That’s when the series sparkles, as it reminds us that light shines brightest in the darkest of nights—or the deepest of caves. ~ Twwk

Streaming on HiDIVE.

Spy x Family

Voted Japan’s most anticipated anime of 2022 by an absolute landslide, Spy x Family did the impossible and lived up to all the hype. And then some! The series combines action, comedy, spy thriller, and a dash of romance as it follows a fake family where each of the members is hiding a secret—even the dog! They’ve been brought together by circumstances in order to save the world by foiling a war between the East and West in a Cold War-like situation. But as the story progresses, those fake bonds become more and more genuine, as the Forger Family learn to care for one another and no longer hide behind their respective masks. The animation is stunning, while the color design shines brightly and captivates the eye. The production is slick, but captures all the looseness and charm of the original manga, to the point where Anya could rival Bocchi for Best Comedy Faces of 2022. In short, Spy x Family is masterful, creating a fun ride that you never want to end. And here’s the good news: it’s not going to anytime soon! Season 2 has already been announced. Here’s to the continuing journey of Japan’s—and now possibly the entire world’s—favorite fake family! ~ Samuru & claire

Streaming on Crunchyroll.

Ya Boy Kongming!

If there was an award for Most Classy Anime Character, then in 2022, it would have to go to Kongming. Having been a world-leading tactician in his past life, he now uses his flashy intellect and proven stratagems to help young singer Eiko achieve her dreams in modern-day Shibuya. But it’s actually another quieter, hidden ability that makes him such a compelling character, namely, his ability to demonstrate what it means to serve others well, putting them above himself. He more than lives up to the call “to be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” In addition to such powerful characterization, this anime also showcases some of the most catchy music of the year! Whether it’s the upbeat and fun opening song “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”, the slower-paced and moving “Dreamer,” or the driving rock ballad “Underworld,” there’s something here for every musical taste. Ya Boy Kongming! is genuinely a one-of-a-kind anime that not only offers strong entertainment, but also explores deeper themes in such a way as to leave you thinking well after the final episode has finished. ~ Laura A. Grace & claire

Streaming on HiDIVE.

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Honorable Mention

Our honorable mention anime, perhaps more than even our top ten selections, demonstrate how strong a year it was for the medium. How so? Well, we could have slipped any of a number of these into our top ten without much fuss, don’t you think? And there are a few heralded anime from 2022 that didn’t even make it into our honorable mentions. What a strong year!

Without further ado, in alphabetical order, here are our honorable mention anime of 2022:

Aharen-san was Hakarenai

Birdie Wing

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Drifting Home

Do it Yourself

I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss!

Kaguya-Sama: Love is War -Ultra Romantic-

Laid-back Camp Movie

Mob Psycho 100 III

My Dress-up Darling

One Piece Film: RED

Play it Cool, Guys

Raven of the Inner Palace

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anitrendz · 1 year

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Top 10 Boys of Week 9

Mob is number ONE! He climbs up three spots to reclaim his place as his anime remains in dead heat competition in the Top Anime of the Week charts. Loid continues to perform well, climbing up one spot for second place. Denji and Aki fall as girls take center stage from Chainsaw Man in last week’s episode.

Only two more weeks to go before the end of the season! Who will be crowned as Best Boy of Fall? These last two weeks can be crucial! Vote, vote, vote!

#mob psycho #mob psycho 100 #spy x family #spy family #chainsaw man #the eminence in shadow #blue lock #anime trending #anime charts #best boy #anitrendz

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symeraid-s · 1 year

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2022 Retrospective: TV-Shows/Movies

I didn’t really watch any anime this year, so I took all the anime categories out of this retrospective, because I can’t just talk about Spy x Family and Chainsaw Man. So, instead, here are the 2022 shows/movies I watched quickly reviewed.

Zettai BL Naru Sekai vs Sekai BL Narutakunai ni Otoko/The Man Who Defies the World of BL Season 2

This show still is hilarious. I mean, sure, I was hoping for a bit more romance between Mobu and Kikuchi, because they are adorable, and I ship them so hard. But what we got was still good. The last episode of this season had me rolling in laughter and tears. The confession-scene in this show is one of my favourite BL scenes as of now and I rewatch it regularly. Now I only need a season 3 with some actual romance for Mobu and Kikuchi. Come on, don’t leave me hanging, please.

KinnPorsche the Series

Well, this is the big one. Mannner of Death walked, so that this show could run. Some of the scenes in this show are seriously close to pornographic. I still really enjoyed the show, though there were some moments where I thought that it dropped the plot. Mile and Apo are really great together though, so that doesn’t really matter. The fanfictions of this show are really great, and I hope to add some of my own in this new year (most likely not…). Though one thing that is a massive turn off for me is how the fandom baby meow meows Vegas and shits on Kinn. Like, why is there a “Kinn Apologist” tag? Do I really need to apologise for liking a fictional character who is supposed to be morally grey? No, I will not. Kinn is my favourite character, there, I said it. This show also has Jeff Satur in it which is always a plus. And this is also probably just the Ingredients fan in me talking, but wasn’t Gameplay supposed to play Porchay? Why isn’t he? I mean, Barcode is great as Porchay, but he and Jeff by far don’t have the same chemistry that Jeff and Gameplay have.

Old Fashioned Cupcake

Yeah, I think this is my favourite show of the year. The writing is amazing, the acting is fantastic, and the characters are great. The only problem I can see, is that there are only five episodes of this wholesome show. It tells you that even if you’re nearing 40 (which is apparently already considered old) you can always find yourself and that it’s never too late. Kouhei Takeda is absolutely stellar in this show. Funny thing about that is that I watched Kamen Rider Build in 2021, after watching Zettai BL 1 and now three of the main riders have starred in BL Shows and I can’t believe it’s a coincidence anymore.

Kei x Yaku

Another BL with Atushiro Inukai, who is on his steady way to become one of my favourite Japanese actors. It’s a mafia drama bromance, leaning more towards the mafia drama than the bromance. It’s basically Kinnporsche, but with more political intrigue and no porn. Well… on screen at least.

The Umbrella Academy Season 3

This whole season could have been solved in one episode if there were some communication. That’s the most I can say about the story. It’s good. I really liked this season. I really liked the Sparrows. Sloane is a cool character and I really liked Sparrow!Ben. He just such a petty gay throughout the entire season and I love it. The rest of the Sparrows were cool, though I would have loved to get some more development for them and not just meet them for three episodes. I’m really looking forward to the final season coming this year.

Sandman

Yes, this show is amazing, what else can I tell you? The characters are great, the writing is great, it’s a good adaption that uses it’s medium to its fullest. I mean, it’s written by Neil Gaiman, what more can we want, am I right?

Wednesday

Maybe Tim Burton is getting back on track. At least somewhat. There are parts of this show I really enjoy. Jenna Ortega is amazing as Wednesday and seeing her energy clash with Enid’s is one of the highlights of this show. They are cute and I ship them, and they should have been together, mostly because the rest of her love interests are boring guys. I really can’t imagine Wednesday with any guy. Or girl for that matter. I always thought she was Ace. But yeah, make them lesbians, Netflix. I also really like the aesthetic of this show. Though there is one aspect that I just can’t get behind: The rest of the Addams Family. Morticia as a character is fine, though she should have been played by Christina Ricci, it would have been a great nod. My problem mainly lies with Gomez. And no, it’s not because he’s not conventionally attractive. He’s just so slimy and pathetic and that’s not Gomez at all. He needs to be charming. Also, the Addams are not bad parents.

Usogui

I watched this movie on a 14-hour plane ride from Costa Rica back home, when I was unable to sleep. And for what it was, I really enjoyed it. When I got home, I googled the movie and found out it was a live action adaption of a manga. It didn’t dim my enjoyment. I watched the movie again with my sister just for this review and I have to say: For what it is, it’s not bad. It does condense about 100 chapters into two hours, so a lot of stuff gets lost. But, and this is something I can always kind off appreciate about Live Action Adaptions (except Death Note): Most of the time, they get you interested in the source material. I started reading the manga after watching the movie and I do not regret it. The manga is absolutely fantastic. Madarame Baku is one of my new favourite characters. And Ryusei Yokohama is a great actor to play him.

#2022 retrospective #zettai bl ni naru sekai vs zettai bl ni naritakunai otoko #kinnporsche #old fashion cupcake #kei x yaku #the umbrella academy #sandman #wednesday #usogui

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fairy-writes · 1 year

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SO this is a day late; whoops, I meant to post this on New Years' Eve

I did this last year and wanted to do it again! So here’s a list that no one asked for of the top 10 anime series I watched this year, including two honorable mentions. They are ranked from (in my opinion) best to worst!

Animes I Watched This Year:

Arcane: League of Legends

IDK if this counts as an anime, but I love it so much that I’m including it anyway.

Literally my favorite animated show of all time.

It beats out Moriarty the Patriot, Demon Slayer, all of the animes.

People who have been following me since my Arcane obsession began know of my love for Viktor.

He’s my favorite and deserves the world.

But the show is stunning; every shot is amazing, the music is astounding, and everything about it is breathtaking!

Jujutsu Kaisen 0

Ok, I saw this in theaters, and I wanted to cry because it’s so beautiful.

I already owned the manga and had read it, and the fact that I love the movie more than the manga is something to consider.

There was never a boring moment in the movie, all the characters were memorable (with the exception of very few), and I absolutely adore Yuta.

Like, I already loved Geto because of that flashback arc we had in the manga, but Yuta beat him, he beat Gojo, and he beat everyone in the entire anime as my favorite except for maybe Inumaki.

This was truly Yuta’s movie, and I can’t wait for season 2!

Demon Slayer Season 2

THIS SHOW BLEW MY EXPECTATIONS OUT OF THE WATER

The CGI used was absolutely amazing. THIS IS HOW CGI SHOULD BE USED PEOPLE TAKE NOTES

Uzui is actually my favorite Hashira, save for Iguro (my least favorite is Rengoku, don’t come for me) so seeing a season dedicated to him was great.

I own all the manga, and this was one of my favorite arcs, so seeing it animated was like a birthday present.

Bungou Stray Dogs: WAN!

THIS SHOW IS SO CUTE, BUT ALSO MADE ME CRY WTF

Like episode 10? Had me pretty much bawling my eyes out

I also watched it in dub which was also a treat. I really like the BSD dub, and this was no exception.

Someone, please talk about it with me.

Like I can’t.

I need someone to cry with.

Spy x Family

Normally slice-of-life shows aren’t my thing.

But this one is the exception!

This show is so fun, so colorful, and so just utterly amazing that I can’t help but want to rewatch it a bunch!

I don’t have any complaints about it. It’s just at number 5 cause I love the other shows more.

Chainsaw Man

So I’m collecting the manga right now.

I already read it online and remember pretty much none of it.

This is what I get for reading it during finals week lmao

But the show is so cool!

It helps refresh my memory of what happens and every moment (save for the first kiss) is animated so beautifully!

They use CGI really well, with very few moments looking awkward or just out of pace.

This is only down at the halfway mark because it hasn’t gotten to my favorite part of the manga yet, so I can’t accurately judge how much I’ll love my favorite parts.

The Case Study of Vanitas Season 2

THIS IS SUCH A PRETTY SHOW

The only reason it’s down this far is because I didn’t actually finish season 2.

I didn’t even see the final fight between everyone and the Beast of Gevaudan, or however you spell it

So I really can’t judge this show until I finish the entire thing, haha

Blue Exorcist

I’M ONLY ON EPISODE THREE AND HAVEN’T SEEN IT SINCE 2014 DON’T COME FOR ME

I’m watching it in English Dub, and I think this is the only role that I actually like Bryce Papenbrook in. Anything else, and he just comes across as slightly annoying, but I really like him as Rin!

But this show is such a nostalgia trip. It’s great to rewatch, and the animation holds up really well!

Also, the opening is one of my favorites. I absolutely adore it.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress

This one is so bizarre, but I still really enjoy it.

Like the premise is so cool, and the animation is great!

It just fell kind of flat.

They just needed more episodes to really explore everything they wanted to, but overall, 7/10 would recommend it to someone looking for a short but fun watch!

High Rise Invasion

I’m not even done with episode 1, but I already really enjoy the guy with the sniper rifle. I think he’s called Sniper Mask?

Anyway, the whole bit at the beginning of that one cop or whatever trying to make the main girl take off her clothes wasn’t the best.

It is part of what brought it down to number ten.

The other part is just that I haven’t finished it.

I’m noticing a trend with my watching habits, lol

Honorable Mentions

Sk8 the Infinity

Literally, the only thing beating this out of my top ten list is Adam.

I actually had this idea of writing a story of a detective from America coming to Japan and arresting him because that was hilarious to me, and he didn’t deserve the ending he got.

He deserved much worse, and no one can change my mind.

Millionaire Detective: Balance Unlimited

Oh. My. Gosh. This show was SO BORING

I CANNOT

I WAS DYING

The first couple of episodes were really fun and jazzy and whatever, but by the end, I was doing literally everything I could just not to watch it.

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regarding-stories · 11 months

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A guilty pleasure: "Chainsaw Man"

So, I started this show under the wrong impression it had lots of seasons. (Plus I had seen Pochita on shirts and was curious.) I got part-way into first episode, stopped, then took it up again. And then I finished an extremely solid first season rather quickly to my own surprise.

Chainsaw Man at its simplest is the story of a boy who can turn into a guy with a chainsaw as its head and chainsaw on his arms to fight devils that threaten mankind. However, that would sell the story quite short.

(Spoilers, obviously.)

Over the first few episodes we learn the origin of Denji who tries to desperately pay down his father's excessive debts to the Yakuza. As we met him, he lives alone in absolute poverty - having sold body parts to pay down some of the debt. He however befriended a small devil he calls Pochita, which is a mix of chainsaw and dog, and whom he ... uses ... to fight devils, an occupation that pays quite well, except almost all his earnings are taken by his Yakuza handler.

Denji doesn't go to school, doesn't know anybody his age (presumably 16), and his existence would generally be seen as miserable. The debt seems endless, he has no friends, and he can't even afford a proper meal. He dreams of jam on toast. His likely prospect is to die either fighting devils and fiends or to be offed by the Yakuza once they think he's no longer profitable.

Denji, however, made a pact with Pochita. He once saved the wounded Pochita and nursed him to health, and loves the little thing like a pet dog. He promised him his body should he die so that at least Pochita lives on. Outnumbered by zombie fiends created by a devil that killed his Yakuza creditor, he dies from his wounds. In this moment Pochita enters his body and replaces his dead heart, and only his chainsaw starter tail sticks out his chest. In a dream sequence he asks Denji to fulfill his dreams.

Denji turns into Chainsaw Man and slaughters all the fiends, then the devil who created them. His body has been restored, and without knowing he's almost immortal now. His ties to his past are broken, and he's found amid the carnage by Public Safety, an outfit stepping in to fight the most dangerous devils. And the local bigwig Makima recruits him.

And herein lie the seeds of a more complex story than anticipated.

More than one theme

I expected Chainsaw Man to be mostly a focused action anime. And no doubt it delivers solid action scenes. But the action scenes are more rare than you'd think and balanced out by a lot of character development, world-building, and social relationships, hooking me on the series very quickly.

Take for example Makima, his recruiter. She's immediately recognizable as a complex character. Manipulating his simple needs, she enlists him into her outfit and becomes his handler. He falls in love with her, given that she is a pretty woman that actually has been kind to him. But she has no qualms telling him that it's her way or ending up dead. She obviously has use for him, quickly guessing he's extremely powerful and her best bet at aiming high regarding the fight against the devils threatening Japan and the world.

The season reveals her as a powerful and absolutely ruthless witch, but also as deeply knowledgeable about human nature. One of the main themes that makes the series interesting is that Denji is an underdeveloped human rapidly making the experiences he was missing out on.

This leads to an actually very interesting scene. Denji, being the naive and uncultured teenage boy he is, thinks that grabbing an actual boob is the height of delight. Power is a devil and colleague, and after saving her beloved cat Meowsy (and herself), she pays Denji back by allowing three solid grabs of the goods. Except he realizes it doesn't make him happy. He goes in a downright funk, no longer sure what his motivations are, and takes his worries to Makima. She shows her mastery of understanding the relationship between sensations, emotions, and mental fantasies by completely wrapping Denji around her finger, titillating and teasing him until he can't process it anymore at all, then makes him commit to her goal - defeating the Gun Devil.

At this point I'm not even sure about what we can or cannot expect from Makima, her character is in fact one of the big mysteries of the story. But in a few skilled strokes and scenes it all transported the ideas behind Maslow's pyramid of needs (without ever mentioning it) and navigating it becomes Denji's personal character arc. We also learn how innocent and naive he is, and straightforward and pure - hidden by his completely bratty and immature demeanor.

Motivations and losses

We learn the motivations of the cast over time.

There's his senpai Aki, somebody who doesn't really show emotion. The Gun Devil incident claiming 1.2 million lives killed his family, and he will sacrifice his lifespan and anything to seek revenge for it. His fighting powers are enhanced by devil contracts.

We're not exactly sure what originally motivated Himeno, but she's Aki's senior partner in turn who has seen too many of her partners die over the years. Protecting and finally loving Aki is her motivation, and she dies doing it. Her letters to her family reveal how much she had been hoping for Aki to drop out of the death spiral that is Public Safety. Her contract with a devil that can manifest ghost arms was her main fighting style.

Power is a blood devil, basically a being obsessed with blood as sustenance and killing for it without scruples, that bonded with a cat. Getting that cat back from a powerful Bat Devil bonds her to Denji, and together with Denji she's a large part of the comic relief. (They're hilarious in their naive stupidity! Both of them technically didn't have "an ubringing.") She can form blood into weapons that obey her will.

Kobeni is a cowardly girl that possesses insane speed. She's extremely anxious and afraid and only "in it for the money" as it was either this or become sex worker. Apparently her family really did a number on her, seeing her just as a way to make money to support more "worthy" family members. It is said that becoming mentally unstable is actually a boon in devil hunting, and after Kobeni cracks, she becomes kind of badass.

Another facet of the story is that the cast expands and contracts over time as it is apparently not afraid to kill characters for appropriate dramatic impact. This leads us to the oddity that characters appear in the opening and closing credits who are no longer alive - usually a sign of their long-term significance. Nya, nya, you've been had.

A word of warning

Yes, the show is gory. But the entrails and other parts you will see over time are no better or worse than what happens in other shows. The action sequences are certainly extremely well-executed, choreographed, and at the forefront of anime effects at this point in time.

My word of warning is about another scene that is both sickening and very clever. I will not spell out what exactly happened at the party with coworkers, but let it suffice to say that it still actually physically revolts me whenever I think of it. They even pixelated it out. Doesn't help any.

So, prepare to have yourselves massively grossed out.

(Not that scene.)

But I said it's clever. Let's detour into a peculiarity of Japanese shows. The drinking age is 20. Whether it be through censorship or self-censorhip, Japanese shows make sure that adults don't give alcohol to "minors" or even adults (18-19 year olds) under the drinking age. Either the minors themselves will refuse or the adults change track when they learn somebody's age.

This can play out in a variety of ways - in shows like My Teenage Romantic SNAFU and Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki (actually, the scene is as of now only present in the books) the protagonists just plain out refuse their 20-year-old temptresses. In Rent-a-Girlfriend a 19-year-old college student reminds the other guests at a drinking party that she's under-age and therefore doesn't drink - but then gets as stupid as the rest, lampshaded by the main character.

So, Denji, being probably 16 (he isn't sure), isn't included in the drinking, and through contrived circumstances gets drunk anyway! I can't help but think the whole thing is actually flipping the bird at the rules while technically abiding by them...

Anyway - super gross scene, you've been warned, I wash my hands of this...

Otherwise, you would find a show firmly rooted in Japanese culture in many ways, with good world-building, great characters, clever action scenes that are not overdone, and a surprising lot of story, scene-setting, and ideas in general. It's pretty damn funny, too.

(Some would call it "good cringe...")

And now I can't decide if I hit the manga instead or wait the long, long, dark wait for a second season...

#chainsaw man #anime series

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