Random Curiosity

「終焉機動 (スティール・ウェイト)」 (Sutiiru Weito)
“Steel Weight”

Well Clockwork Planet certainly pulled no surprises in its last big outing. The big giant robot (because that title never gets old) was soundly defeated and Gennai learned what happens when you make naughty with a loli, all the while still ranting about Y and his world twisting. Quite funny how we learned nothing further on Y or his relation to Naoto/Marie, but there’s enough hinting towards reincarnation or power transfer to keep me satisfied. No point getting hopes up too far.

The best part though was AnchoR who once again stole the show, fighting hard and actually showcasing some surprisingly serious pain and suffering. Sure we’ve already seen some serious consequences before, but ripping hands off of preteen girls definitely leaves a mark. At least AnchoR’s sacrifice was worth it once Marie finally reconciled to the fact AnchoR is her daughter and is not going anywhere. Obviously sucks for Naoto and his healthy delusions, but the kid benefits from Marie’s art of persuasion when RyuZU isn’t around to keep the peace. Plot irritations or not, the Naoto family life never gets boring. Plus we got Halter back in proper form and the sexbot along for the ride, cannot complain about that. With a happy(ish) ending and an opening for further adaptation if desired, cannot fault Clockwork’s way of wrapping things up.

Final Impressions

Out of all “hyped” shows this season, I’d argue Clockwork Planet is the most disappointing. By this I do not mean the show is objectively terrible—far from it—but that it failed to live up to preseason expectations. With Clockwork being the brainchild of Kamiya Yuu, most people were probably anticipating something similar to NGNL. Not an exact copy obviously, but features such as a hilarious protagonist duo, a quirky premise, and a focus more on comedy than stark realism. Clockwork certainly hit on parts of these ideas during its run (particularly the character chemistry), but it never emphasized the components needed to raise it above typical light novel ware. Take the clockwork setting for example, by itself it’s incredibly interesting and far out from the normal settings, but the show arguably underutilized it. Beyond some well-researched science and plot-related functionality (ex. Naoto’s and Marie’s abilities) the steampunk was largely relegated to background scenery. We saw gears all over, were constantly told of their importance, but never saw the full impact. Why is Y so controversial? Why is the world fundamentally flawed? How does half this crap work without electromagnetism while functionally identical? Yuu had some fantastic conceptual ideas, but they were never elaborated on enough, whether due to the material adapted or the adaptation choices.

Now to be fair the aforementioned is a common problem of adaptations, particularly those with heavy world building, but it’s acutely felt in Clockwork because the story as presented does not make up for it. Undercurrents of conspiracy, political upheaval, and a world wrong at its core were barely espoused on, and the big bad in Gennai became more of a minor monster of the week than a true evil. The connections back to Gennai and his motivations were poorly handled, hints were few and far between, and any sense of understanding aggravatingly held off until the last moment. It’s flawed writing requiring one reads the source material for understanding, let alone closure—more than enough to turn the anime-only viewer off from both show and series. You need a coherent plot viewers can connect the dots in, something condensing focus and allowing the unfamiliar to quickly latch on with. Busou Shoujo with its simple, singular plot showed the possibilities, while last season’s Youjo Senki—even with all its cut material and arc rearrangements—indicated how well a tight story can carry an otherwise superficial premise. All Clockwork needed was to better tie its disparate plot pieces together to avoid the pitfalls that turned many viewers off initially.

What kept me committed to Clockwork though and saved it from being a net negative was its characters. I’ve discussed it lots over the weeks, but Naoto and RyuZU really saved the day here. Yeah their relationship was cliché, cheesy, and total wish fulfillment, but it was funny, honest, and quite endearing. Naoto slowly morphed from an utter dweeb into a staunch and loyal protagonist who, while never actually kissing RyuZU, did actually ask (voicelessly) for her hand in marriage. You do not see that all too often. Marie only helped round out the picture by filling those traits Naoto lacked, and by morphing herself out of a tsundere stand-in into strong-willed blondie. Both characters had personal flaws, and only through the assistance of each other could overcome them and find new strength—textbook character development. I’m quite sad we won’t get to see the fruits of their evolved relationship—especially with a concrete plot to now work with—but what we have here is enough to leave me satisfied. Not the best characters or development ever seen, but a fun, enjoyable experience worth the price of admission.

Considering all the above, is Clockwork really worth it? Depends on what one is looking for. If you want a well thought out science fiction story capable of capturing and keeping your attention I’d peruse elsewhere, but if quirky and fun character casts are your thing I’d consider giving it a go. Clockwork’s ridiculous Naoto family harem may not exactly save the show from serious criticism, but with the right mindset it’s enough to keep things amusing and patch over the more glaring faults. I may dislike a fair bit about Clockwork’s execution and setup, but I will say it never once failed to entertain. Considering how bad some light novel adaptations can be, it’s hard asking for more.

“Cupids are so…….interesting!”

Many comedies have a tricky time demanding the viewer to accept serious moments without it feeling out of place, but this show continued to impress me with how well they pulled off this feat. With every new episode, we learned about what makes the cast tick, what their motivations and passions are, and the reasons why the Kiss Note’s contract means so much to them. At the same time, the visual gags, slapstick, and meta humor take up a good chunk of screen-time. The genius of it all is how natural it feels fused together.

What makes the show a fresh breath of air is how they take the characters seriously. As the show moved forward, we learned that the characters are so much more than what the jokes write them as. Whereas Akane and Yuzu’s affection are revealed to come from a place where they had fallen in love with those who had given them a reason to let down their protective walls, Seiji’s sister Akua used her love for her big brother to gain the strength she needed to face her fears. Sure, it was in the form of a sexual harassment demon penguin, but fears nonetheless. They even made some of the morally dubious characters like Shikimi and Maoh sympathetic with the alienation and rejection they faced during earnest attempts at finding love inspiring them to achieve their goals through underhanded methods. The fact that they gave side characters such as the teacher/student couple and the couple that Guri almost Ghostbusted a sense of sentimentality in their relationships and pursuit of love was nothing short of impressive. And I love myself some side characters!

The most moving development, however, has been Guri trying to find out what love means to her. As a cupid, she was mostly concerned with pairing up the hottest guys together, and to her, love was an impulse. Throughout the show, Akane and Yuzu, who had a definite answer for why they feel love, questioned Guri on her feelings for Seiji. Was it the kind of love that leaves a funny feeling in your chest, and creates a magnetic bond towards the person you want to spend the rest of your life with? Is it an impulse driven by infatuation, or that sense of belonging you get when you’re around that special someone? She’d always say that she loved Seiji, but it took manifesting a demonic form from her own sorrow and Seiji’s realization of how he feels about Guri for her to really put her thumb down on why she felt how she did around him. Despite the fast pace the show took to get to everyone’s resolution, it was still poignant when Guri finally found the answer she was looking for, and returned to her old self to continue the wacky hijinks of her harem.

As a comedy, Renai Boukun delivers the laughs regularly, depending on your tolerance of the character’s eccentricities. Guri continued to exude an over-the-top, bombastic approach to anything she did, Akane would be possessive of Seiji to the point of making anyone who did so much as touch Seiji pay the ultimate price, Yuzu’s carried on worshipping the ground Akane walks on, and Shikimi kept butting in when she wasn’t particularly wanted or needed. A bulk of the show’s humor came from the characters’ interactions with one another as well as the different brands of crazy dysfunctionality Guri would introduce to any scenario. It can be overbearing at times to see so much happening at once, but the frenzy is part of what makes the show as unique as it is.

In other shows, the impulse to drive their personalities in the ground would be the highest priority, but this show sidesteps this problem with just the right balance between pushing the boundary as far as they can with slapstick goofiness, and exploring the subtleties that romance and budding love can give to someone. Guri’s motivation to find out whether the feelings she has around Seiji are as genuine as Akane and Yuzu’s love form the emotional center of Renai Boukun. It’s quite something that a show with such a silly head on its shoulders can be as touching as it is.

「少女達の「マキャヴェリズム」」 (Shoujo-tachi no makyaverizumu)
“The Girls’ Machiavellism”

And with that it is over. It was a fairly conventional finale for Busou Shoujo, we got the conclusion to the fight, some hints towards future arc(s), and a little more comedic girl teasing to round things out. Pretty damn funny Amou managed to steal the kiss too, you’d think Rin would have snatched that, but I’m guessing she—like Mary—is destined romantic purgatory. How else could we legitimately keep the cute smiles coming?

Although Amou never really became the ultimate boss, she did live up to the danger presented. Her yandere tendencies were on point, as her possessive rage was clearly building up long before Satori’s picture giving, and she dived head first—literally—into some serious sadomasochism. Yanderes might forever be associated with clinical insanity, but Amou proves the archetype can retain a degree of levelheadedness. After all, she managed to leave Nomura speechless for once with that claim of ownership. Still think Tsukuyo is the better girl, but then I’m all in on those eyes and her hilarious (self)-promotion to teacher of the bad boy. Plus with Nomura still enrolled—serious giggle at the headmistress out-deadpanning Satori—we’ll only be seeing more of the little loli. You can be sure she’ll want her own piece of that Nomura booty, no matter the stubborn efforts of the quite cute harem duo. Nomura may have won over the school (mostly) and acquired a plethora of new friends, but the real struggle of filtering the romantic prospects has just begun. There’s never any rest for the weary.

Final Impressions

Busou Shoujo is a funny one to look back on. Most shows often depend on audience perception for enjoyment, but Busou Shoujo does to a significant degree. Yes it’s a clear parody, but not many others feature an ultra-feminist school run by a bunch of sword-wielding girls. It’s a recipe for disaster in our politically charged environment, but Busou Shoujo revels in it. I could have easily spent my blogging time delving into the show’s foundation—the treatment of feminism, the usage of actual martial arts, how it all relates to modern Japan—for example, but that would have sucked all the fun out of it. This show is naturally crazy, of course you will lose your mind if you take it seriously, that’s the point; Busou Shoujo is meant to get you laughing and keep you laughing, and it certainly succeeded at that.

What primarily made Busou Shoujo’s ridiculous premise work was a combination of Nomura and his stamp collecting goal. We are all used to the meek, oblivious, and outright pathetic harem leads there solely as wish fulfillment stand ins, but Nomura breaks the concept by going full Casanova. He flirts, he teases, he effortlessly runs circles around girls in a way that defines “amused mastery”. This takes away the suspension of disbelief often needed when the girl falls for the protagonist, because it’s expected in Nomura’s case—he’s just that good. Couple that with the varied manner of Nomura’s victories—he never single handily won them all—and the early limitation of the “harem” to Rin and Mary, and it’s hard finding fault here. Part of the reason is the show’s restriction of plot to stamp collecting. We know Nomura will challenge all the Swords and win, so the difficulty is making each fight interesting. This forced creativity out of Busou Shoujo, which when coupled with Nomura’s uncommon personality created a variety of scenarios unique from one another. The key for any comedy is variance, and by consistently ensuring a different fight every time, Busou Shoujo largely avoided the potential pitfalls.

Where Busou Shoujo stumbled slightly, however, was in development. Besides Amou and Rin, the Swords either received little fleshing out or incredibly rushed backstories. While pacing problems are mostly to blame and entirely expected—it’s an adaptation after all—it’s still annoying to know how better some of the reveals could have been with more time. Naturally I’m referring to Satori and her sister, but even the others would have been well-served with some additional backstory (looking at you Mary). This is not that big an issue considering how well Busou Shoujo handled the more contentious components, but it’s always nice when a harem show tries fleshing out the girls as much as the protagonist(s). It’s good knowing the romantic interests have complex personalities behind the looks.

While I may not have known entirely what I was getting myself into covering Busou Shoujo, in hindsight I can say I’m quite glad to have picked this one up. Once past the strangeness of its premise the show never failed keeping me amused, and always offered something new to discuss every week—and believe me, I like easy to discuss shows. Busou Shoujo certainly isn’t the best thing to ever grace anime and will leave more than a few confused in its wake, but as base entertainment the show did its job in spades. For comedy, it’s hard finding better praise.

Lord Grim, the legendary unkillable demon king, alongside some allies

I suspect that Quan Zhi Gao Shou would have flown under my radar this season, had it not been for its focus on eSports. As an avid follower of the eSports scene in League of Legends, I was very open to the idea of watching Quan Zhi Gao Shou, not to mention reading Chinese web novels used to be one of my hobbies. Quan Zhi Gao Shou follows a formula that I have noticed in many Chinese web novels. The protagonist gets terribly wronged and is cast into an extremely disadvantaged position. From humble beginnings with grievance in their hearts, they will work their way up to enact the most magnificent revenge. Those on the receiving end get their comeuppance since they failed to have eyes for Mount Tai, and these kind of stories usually hit the spot where justice is concerned. Although the execution is crude, there is definitely no shortage of extreme hype.

Would you like this show?

I think Quan Zhi Gao Shou would appeal to many with an interest in video games or those with a keen appetite for action sequences. You’re essentially watching someone be good at a video game, setting speed run record for MMO style dungeon clear times, and fighting off other players who may bear some kind of grudge or ill-will in exciting PvP skirmishes. A much greater focus on eSports will happen in the second season, once Ye Xiu throws together a new team, so stay tuned if that is what captures your interest.

Strive for the Summit

Along the way, Ye Xiu becomes acquainted with various skilled beginners. It wouldn’t take a genius to piece together the puzzle, and figure out that he fully intends to eventually start up a new team. Gathering together a ragtag bunch, watching Ye Xiu teaching them how to get better at the game while fostering their talent makes for a satisfying experience. Maybe not a good comparison, but think of Ash training his Pokémon across the series, going through many trials and tribulations before finally challenging the Pokémon League.

What are the characters like?

Lazily cocksure with the ability to back it up, Ye Xiu is much like Oikawa Tohru, who is one of my favourite characters from Haikyuu. To be honest, I only really liked two other characters in the show and that’s because they were pretty much your token joke characters. Bao Rongxing for being a kindhearted idiot. When I say idiot, he looks stupid, sounds stupid and is stupid. He truly cannot be helped. Huang Shaotian on the other hand fires off words at the rate of a machine gun, which sounds pretty annoying. But seeing him piss off other people, as well as his extraordinarily potent trash-talking abilities, made for some really hilarious moments. If you think Doublelift fires savage shots in his interviews, wait until you see this Huang Shoatian guy.

eSports Underdog Narratives

Everybody loves a good underdog story. Ye Xiu is not an underdog if we look at his abilities, but he is an underdog because of circumstances forced upon him. In the final episode, I thought the depiction of Ye Xiu’s rivalry with Han Wenqing hit the mark. It was a pretty good choice, since the entertainment of eSports is often framed around narratives – KOO Tigers’ Cinderella Story, EG’s comeback from three racks down against EHOME, Origen going from promotion to the World Championship Semi-Finals in half a year. Dynasties may rise and fall – KOO Tigers have disbanded, while Origen have been relegated. But these moments of overcoming the odds continue to remain immortal.

Silver Lining on a Dark Cloud

Traditionally, Chinese production companies are usually subpar compared to the standard in current Japanese animating industry. Although Tencent are nowhere close to the likes of KyoAni or Production IG, they managed some really impressive work in Quan Zhi Gao Shou. I was pleasantly surprised by how gorgeous the aesthetics and character designs were, and the voice acting wasn’t half bad.

Unfortunately, in what seems like the publisher’s attempt to completely monopolise profits, they have taken on the production of Quan Zhi Gao Shou’s second season now that popularity has been established. Chinese companies often go for the obvious cash grab, instead of letting the goose lay its golden eggs. With a chance that the second season might be disappointing, for those who can’t decide whether to wait or not, I would recommend that people go and read the webnovel translations. Shoutout to Gravity Tales, where these can be found.

Concluding Thoughts

You won’t catch me screaming Ye Xiu, the way I do it with Faker’s name when the madman pulls off absolutely insane plays. But I can guarantee there is far more emotional investment in Ye Xiu’s quest for vindication and vengeance. His story far from being finished, I look forwards to Quan Zhi Gao Shou’s second season gaining a focus on competitive eSports, as Ye Xiu’s newly formed team goes on the rise.

「どうか、忘れないで -evidence of existance-」 (Douka, Wasurenaide -evidence of existance-)
“Please Don’t Forget -evidence of existance-”

Even though we knew exactly where the story was going, I can’t believe how emotionally taxing this episode was.

General Impressions

As much as I want to criticize the show for its pacing and how it uses Willem and the rest of our characters, I’ll give it to the writers for getting me so emotionally invested that I could throw all my little complaints out the window if they’d just give Ctholly a happy ending. Thinking back to episode one and just how carefree things felt, it’s amazing to even think about just how much things have changed. We’re at a literal breaking point where everything is falling apart and there looks like there’s no happy ending in sight. Willem is probably on the verge of completely losing it, the remaining fairies are pushing themselves way too hard (Neph is true best girl), and every single non-beast in the area is at risk of getting brutally murdered. All of which would be tough to deal with individually, but feel nearly insurmountable when they all hit us at once. Which all things considered isn’t a bad thing, especially when you consider that we’re one episode away from the finale. So if anything, good job to you SukaSuka! You’ve taken the story and spun it into something that’s literally eating away at me as I wait for next week’s episode to air.

On a random side note, let me quickly talk about First-Grade Technical Officer Purple Guy and how much I loved him this week. As a throw away character that was introduced to us simply as comedic relief in the form of an inept higher-up, I found myself surprised just how excited I was to see him pull his weight when the situation called for it. Instead of flailing around in fear, I loved how he told a subordinate that ship repairs was something he could do in his sleep and then actually started to work on the damn ship. With supplies running low there was just something inspiring watching him use his bare hands and some elbow grease to get the thing running. And even if there are some haters out there who would tie his actions to the mere fact he wanted to save his life, you have to hand it to him for being brace in the face of danger and not turning into a quivering mess like so many other inept higher ups we see in other shows.

Anyways, I can’t wait to see what happens next week when Ctholly (or Elq?) get to work doing whatever they have to do. I’ll catch you guys next week where I’ll have a box of tissues ready.

P.S. I don’t really have the energy to talk about the parallels of the beasts and how you could compare it to the fickleness of human society as well as their crazy ability to kill one another. But, for only spending a few minutes on it, Elq’s introduction and subsequent conversation with Ctholly was quite interesting.

Preview

「ボルトとミツキ」 (Boruto to Mitsuki)
“Boruto and Mitsuki”

Uzumaki Family’s Mealtime

It always heals me inside, seeing Hinata living the dream life, married to her beloved Naruto and raising their kids. For someone kind and gentle, who never gave up and stuck by the convictions of her feelings, she sure deserved all the good things she got! Oh, and can Himawari ever not be so adorable? The food they prepared together also looked really dapper! Plus Papa Uzumaki finally has the time to eat at home for once, and the evening is shaping up in a fine and dandy way. There’s a disgruntled Boruto, but please ignore that. Deep down we all know he’s just being a tsun.

When Naruto froze mid-meal, I got Vietnam flashbacks to the Boruto movie, where his clone went poof during Himawari’s birthday meal. As you can imagine, the resulting consequence was not nice at all. But this time, I heaved a sigh of relief. It definitely could have been worse.

Boruto’s Ninja Way

Whereas Naruto was a lot more self-centred as a child and less willing to cooperate with his peers, Boruto’s selflessness has already won the respect of many fellows in the Ninja Academy. Boruto is willing to work together as a team, even if this comes at the expense of his success, which we can clearly see when he refuses to abandon a struggling Denki, subsequently failing the assignment. Not saying that Naruto wouldn’t work together with people earlier on in the series. Rather, his unwillingness to cooperate with Sasuke and Sakura for Kakashi’s Bell Test pretty much sums my point up.

While Naruto’s desire for recognition stems from a more universal culmination of his wish to become Hokage, Boruto only wants recognition from a father who no longer has much time for him. Naruto’s inability to juggle his job and family life is sadly having an adverse affect on the young boy. But there was undeniable truth in Boruto’s words:

“The Hokage sacrifices those closest to them for the sake of the village”

May I remind you, that Minato chose to seal the Nine Tail Fox inside of Naruto himself, knowing fully well how badly Jinchuuriki were treated. It caused Naruto so much suffering his life and though he’s certainly come out a stronger person, no doubt he had a really shitty childhood. Therefore, Boruto choosing to utterly reject this notion of a Hokage is actually not too surprising. Neither views are wrong so much as equally valid, and I look forwards to seeing how they play-off against each other in defining this father-son relationship.

Random Thoughts

Mitsuki’s soul searching is actually an interesting way of constructing his character, an innate curiosity driving him towards making intriguing developments. I wonder what exactly he’s supposed to achieve, that Orochimaru couldn’t do. This particular revelation within the episode gives off a very ominous premonition, though I generally trust Mitsuki’s character. I like to think that his affection for Boruto is genuine and sincere.

It was foreshadowed in earlier episodes. But at this point, Sumire is pretty much implied to have some sort of role in the Ghost Syndrome incidents. The flashback looked rather interesting if not creepy, and I wonder how they will play out in Sumire’s backstory and character development. That said, I’m fully expecting Boruto to successfully lay down the undefeatable Talk no Jutsu. While it looks like we’ll be getting a slice of epic action next episode, with the Rokudaime Kakashi finally making an appearance, hopefully Sumire won’t get killed off. She’s a character I’ve come to quite like so far.

Preview

「夜明けのギルド」 (Yoake no Girudo)
“The Dawn Guild”

After all this time, we’ve learned about the backstories and motivations of the women at Chupakabura…except Yoshino!!! It was an easy thing to overlook because the first couple episodes delve lightly into Yoshino’s situation and her resolve to stay. What the hook of this latest arc does is reintroduce her earlier struggles now that she’s gotten more used to her position at the agency by using the reality show format as a vessel for her development.

It was an interesting idea for Chupakabura’s 20th anniversary celebration to fall within the same time frame that Northern Living decided to hop on over to film a special on the girls of Chupakabura. There were many funny moments with the villagers reacting to the camera’s presence such as Erika acting even more uncharacteristic during the filming, Sandal evoking the spirit of Kevin Costner from Field of Dreams to lend positive energy to the upcoming celebration, and Kadota’s impulse to jump into any scene that’s going on around him.

Knowing how reality shows tend to be portrayed in TV dramas, I expect that there is an ulterior motive in their interest in Manoyama and the decision to hire Ptolemaios, a high-profile rock band that was featured in a soda commercial, to their festival. The band did show up during the next episode’s preview, but Amamiya seemed determined to get material on any conflict that would arise on Yoshino’s end, so I could see the network trying to create a situation that she would have a hard time solving.

Speaking of which, his main concern was the normalcy of Yoshino’s struggles. Even though Yoshino acts as the glue that helps keep all the girls focused and together, it does discredit her to say that after all this time, she’s still called normal. She comes from the same background as Maki and Sanae, except from a younger point-of-view as someone who struggled to find employment in the city. Her change from being rigid about being stuck in the countryside to openly embracing Manoyama was a development that occurred early on.

The next episode could try to resolve her insecurities about being labeled as normal, but for someone who became the Queen of Chupakabura, can cheer up or negotiate with very upset people, can come up with goofy plans like presenting a somen delivery machine made from an arcade game, and would eat an ume and mayo sandwich, it feels odd that Yoshino is considered to be the most normal person in the room. I guess it would stem from sharing her friends’ troubles of being camera-shy, especially since she’s comfortable with people not knowing she was the 100,000th guest at Chupakabura as a kid. The stakes are mounting with guests arriving a night early to the celebration. The stage is set for what should be a great way for Yoshino to realize how she stands out.

Preview

Probably the most iconic image from the series, adapted into anime form.

Tsugumomo is a rare breed of ecchi action show that has been dying out over the last decade. Back in the days, adaptions from manga like Sekirei or Sora no Otoshimono were pretty common. However, they are being slowly superseded by the likes of ecchi action light novel adaptations. So, what sets Tsugumomo apart from its dying brethren? It takes generic, puts an unconventional twist and promises something wholly different.

For this finale post, I will be going with an experimental self-imagined Q&A structure, which should provide more digestible portions for you readers to gobble up. Here goes.

What did you enjoy?

The aspects of the series I really enjoyed were characters, action, comedy and… yeah, the fanservice. There, I said it.

Why the fanservice?

No doubt there is more substance to the series than just fanservice. That said, I can see how fanservice alone would put off potential viewers. But with Tsugumomo, it feels like the fanservice goes hand in hand with every other core aspect of its identity. Often comedic in delivery, there were no giant white bars of doom to detract from the viewing experience. Though we were never treated with the genuine article, which usually remained hidden behind well-placed objects.

Who was your favourite character?

I pretty much liked all the characters apart from Chisato (for being downright boring in her conception as a character) and Shirou (for being a pervert with no redeeming features). Other than that, Kiriha completely stole the show. I was incredibly impressed with Oozora Naomi, who did a fantastic job bringing Kiriha to life on the screen.

The sassy snark was ever-present in her voice, as she seamlessly transitioned between a wide variety of actions and emotions: completely whipping both men in the Kagami household, angrily reprimanding Kazuya for careless mistakes, patiently imparting her knowledge of tsukogami, being seductively sensual, and demonstrating childish behaviour in matters coming down to pudding. Her pudding song served as a comedic highlight of the anime adaptation. For such a facile joke, it made me laugh pretty hard.

Would it be fair to say the Tsugumomo anime exceeded your expectations?

Yes. I was expecting a much more watered down adaptation, but they captured much of the essence you could hope to find in the original manga. While the fanservice was somewhat diminished for reasons pertaining to broadcasting regulations, the character designs remained delightful and true to form.

Essential plot points were covered, and the comedy never really missed its mark for me. Divine Possession made for an epic series finale. The choreography stood out in the action scene particularly where Kazuya and Sunao were trading blows, with the animation sequence and backing soundtracks working together extremely well. It was honestly much better than what I had hoped for.

What can we expect of a second season?

What you gleaned at the end of this Tsugumomo adaptation would only be the tip of the iceberg. A very massive iceberg at that. There is honestly so much more, the universal consensus amongst fellow manga readers being that the beginning was probably the weakest part. In my opinion, things only start to heat up once Sunao appeared. And even then, it comes nowhere close to what we get much later on.

Hopefully there will be less censorship as well. The devil is in the detail!

Concluding Thoughts

Like Mayoiga, Tsugumomo isn’t everybody’s cup of tea. But I can promise you that it becomes something really special later on. The best parts are yet to come, where Tsugumomo plunges down a proverbial dark rabbit hole. Gruesome shock plot twists are weaved in and complex moral dilemmas are introduced, giving ample opportunity for people to greatly contemplate Tsugumomo in an introspective manner. Specifically the Tsukogami’s nature as sentient creatures, with an application similar to tools. Whether you’re willing to wait and see what it’s all about is entirely up to you.

「魔女と魔術師」 (Majo to majutsu shi)
“The Witch and The Sorcerer”

Well wasn’t this just a week of surprises. Guess Zero still had an ace or three left up its sleeve as not only did the epic magic showdown prove a little less epic than expected, but Thirteen showed himself to be a tad more likeable. Quite a funny twist of events going on here, although nothing holds a candle to baby Zero. You know you love that cute little cinnamon roll.

One thing which still gets me regarding Zero is its deceiving previews. Who knew Thirteen’s hinted wounds would come not from Zero, but from a rightfully enraged Holdem. Sly teasing there White Fox. It was pretty damn funny too considering the Zero-Thirteen showdown—while going as expected—was a huge letdown in terms of action. I honestly was expecting and hoping for more, if just to see how impactful destructive magic is in world. Guess that’s for next week. To the show’s credit though, Zero’s abrupt recovery was perfect, with her deadpan questioning of Thirteen’s and the mercenary’s grief downright hilarious—take note people, that’s how you squeeze humour out of suffering. The moment also had the benefit of confirming the transfer of damage to Zero was initiated during the earlier bath scene, tying up another loose end. Slightly surprising Zero didn’t actually remove the spell—really thought the mercenary would demand it—but after our furry body pillow protected Thirteen from Zero, I’m disinclined to suspect anything now.

The real meat of this episode, however, lay in Thirteen’s development. Besides confirming the guy does care for Zero above all else, it also refines the limits of Thirteen’s excesses. It really appears like Thirteen is not as selfish as I pinned him for—still debatable—but honestly wanted a world where Zero could be safe, secure, and happy. Entirely wrong way to go about acquiring it of course, but Thirteen’s heart was at least in the right place. My issue is that Thirteen’s shift in allegiance felt too fast, one moment wanting to control Zero, and the next firmly supporting her plan—little strange for a guy already knee deep into his scheme. Might just be pacing troubles though, the course of events was logical and makes sense considering Thirteen’s old role as Zero’s guardian. The big question will be what Thirteen does now. With the plague’s accidental origins revealed and Albus’ contract voided, there’s good reason to suspect Thirteen will openly allow himself to be killed, whether by the Sorcerers to protect Zero or Albus out of atonement. I could easily see the former considering how radicalized the Sorcerers have become—particularly once they find out Albus is with Thirteen—but there’s also no guarantee Albus won’t preemptively off him out of vengeance. All comes down to Zero’s magic nullification and which goal Albus considers more important.

With only one episode left in this little adventure, the stage is set for one climactic final battle. No doubt the Sorcerers will be defeated and Zero’s grimoire resigned to the dustbin of history—really expect anything else?—but who pays the price for that definitely is up in the air. It’s been a long time getting here, but Zero, quite literally, is ready to go out with a bang.

Preview

「二人の出会いと未来の兄妹」 (Futari no Deai to Mirai no Kyoudai)
“How They Met and Future Siblings”

I was feeling awfully conflicted about this week’s episode until that sweet, sweet cameo right at the end of the episode. Oh, and MASAMUNE FINALLY DODGED SAGIRI’S DOOR.

General Impressions

Overall, I thought this was a pretty good episode and a pretty darn good episode for all the Sagiri fans out there. Instead of your typical flashback episode, it was nice to see the story jump back and forth between the past and the present as it tried to paint a clear picture of what brought Masamune and Sagiri to the point that they’re at right now. From glimpses of both their parents to watching the pair fangirl over each other without realizing they were actually fangirling over each other, it felt like we were taking a leisurely cruise down memory lane. One of the biggest things for me though had to be when we found out Sagiri already had a problem leaving her room. If we’re being honest, I never really liked the whole “I’ve experienced trauma so I won’t leave the house” idea. Not only does it undersell the value of a character, it also paints them as someone who gave up and I personally can’t stand quitters in anime. But if that same character was already like that in the past and the trauma just pushed things to the breaking point, it turns into a unique trait that you can hope they’ll eventually break free from. Which for me personally was a welcome surprise since I’ve been trying to find a good reason to like Sagiri.

That said, on a personal level, I was really disappointed with this week’s episode. As someone who is still fighting for this show to have a rebound, I’m not sure it has enough time left to do so. With a prime opportunity to really tug at our heartstrings and really set things up for the “official” pairing, we were instead given a lukewarm explanation behind Masamune’s first light novel whose first fan just happened to be Sagiri. And not only did the flashbacks lack a big emotional hit, the pacing of it all felt so slow that I was concerned the timeclock on my media player was running at half speed. All-in-all, I was hoping for a lot more than we got and I think it’s a shame since there was so much potential.

So, with only a few episodes left before the end to our Eromanga sensei shenanigans, I’m really hoping something special happens soon. Luckily, with all the main girls out of the way, maybe the story will finally be able to return to its normal format and have everyone interacting together. In any case, I’ll catch you guys next week. See you then!

P.S. THAT CAMEO AT THE END WAS PURE GOLD. God, when I saw Kirino’s hair, I think I almost fell off of my chair. But then to also see Kuroneko, Saori, AND KYOSUKE? God, I nearly died when Kyosuke and Masamune made eye contact since it was like the same character staring at each other. Man, if there’s one thing Eromanga sensei is good at doing, it’s using its other IP to get us all riled up.

End Card

「天狗の血 阿呆の血」 (Tengu no Chi Aho no Chi)
“Tengu’s Blood, Fool’s Blood”

That was certainly an ep that had a little of everything – in fact I’d say it had a lot of everything, like a nabe overstuffed with everything from the pantry and the fridge besides (as long as it’s not stuffed with tanuki, it’s fine by me). Pretty much every plot thread that had been dangling this season got tangled up, and while there wasn’t really anything resolved (there’s the finale still to come, and of course the novels are still ongoing) it certainly set the table (as long as there’s no tanuki on it, it’s fine by me) for a blockbuster final episode next week.

Some of this stuff you could see coming like an Eizan (real or false) Electric Railway car speeding up from Shikoku, while others were pretty much out of left field. I certainly didn’t expect to see Yashiro’s lab tied into the plot this way, through an explosion that appears to have been staged as a means for Kinkaju to “discover” evidence that it was in fact the Shimogamo that killed Soun. Given that we pretty much knew that the Ebisugawa Kureichirou we’ve been looking at is a fake, it seems impossible not to conclude that everything from the moment Yashiro was given that lab in the first place was part of an elaborate setup.

This episode was really about the Ebisugawa clan more than anything – about their perpetual scheming, yes, but also the divisions within their own family. Given what we now know (thanks to Yajirou heroically zipping home with the real Kureichirou in tow) – that “Kureichirou” was in fact Soun, who faked his own death – it seems the key question is “who knew what, and when did they know it?” It’s probably a safe bet that Kaisei wasn’t in on any of this; a good bet (though not a lock, I think) that Kinkaju has been in on it since the beginning. But Ginkaju appears to have been left out of it – at the very least, he has some sympathy for Yashiro and Tousen, and doubts about whether they could really do what Kinkaju accuses them of. And when Kaisei turns up missing (Ginkaju finds her “elopement” note) Ginkaju seems likely to turn to Tousen for help.

Who’s one wild card in this deck? The real Kureichirou himself, of course – though one suspects he’s not entirely sympathetic to the schemes of his father. There was a reason he left home in the first place, of course, and he was willing to accompany Yajirou back once he heard he was being impersonated (and had probably figured out by who). Then there’s Tenmaya, who – if the “shooting” at the Kinyoubi Club was a ruse – was in cahoots with Soun as well. But Tenmaya is a trickster, and he has no loyalty to anyone but himself – when he “sold” the Nidaime’s gun to Soun (so he could plant it as evidence) he sold him a fake.

This is the curse that follows Soun through all his schemes – the castles he builds are always made of sand, and he has no true friends anywhere in the world, only allies of convenience. The one element of all this that really saddens me is that Soun’s death was all a sham – because it was rather sad and beautiful, I thought. Was it really so important to him to be trick magister, that he would go to these lengths and condemn another of his extended family to the pot? Clearly, yes – because clearly, the hatred Soun feels towards Souichirou’s family is so ingrained now that it’s impossible to say where the hatred ends and the man begins.

There are all kinds of interesting Easter eggs scattered through this episode (like Kureichirou telling Yajirou that it was his father that named the little girl he met in Kincho – “Seiran”). And there’s the wonderful father’s day gift of a dream conversation between Yasaburou and Souichirou, full of all the sardonic warmth and tenderness that imbues all the relationships in the Shimogamo clan. But urgent matters win the day – Yasaburou and Kaisei are about to be cooked after all (I assume the latter was not part of Soun’s scheme), and Yaichirou tosses aside the matter of the Trick Magister election to go and save his brother. He’s beaten to the punch, though, by the heroic Yodogawa-sensei – (poorly) disguised as “Pompko Kamen“. He manages to get the ball rolling, at least, though if Yaichirou and Gyokuran hadn’t showed up in tiger form it’s hard to imagine all that would have ended well.

Finally, we have the two jokers in the deck – the Nidaime and Benten, whose roles in the denouement are yet to be determined. Do I judge Benten less harshly because she sheds tears over devouring Yasaburou? No, more harshly if anything – her crocodile tears mean nothing when help up against her actions. As for Nidaime, one imagines he’s going to be rather cross – Soun’s scheme was, ultimately, an attempt to put one over on him, as the arbiter of the election. And when Kinkaju presents the fake gun to him, he realizes he’s been used as part of an elaborate hoax by Soun. I won’t go so far as to say Nidaime feels any loyalty to Yasaburou per se (though he might), but he certainly sees himself as a gentleman and a man of honor – an honor which has been besmirched by all this ugliness. He’s going to have his say next week, you can bet on that – and my bet is that his goal will be to restore some integrity and dignity to tengu-tanuki society.

Preview

「アルクトゥルスへの道」 (Arukuturusu e no michi)
“Road to Arcturus”

Little Witch Academia‘s sprint towards the finish line has been an intense mad-dash to tie up any loose ends it created during the second half of the show. In the process of trying to make a grander plot out of the series, Trigger faces a prevalent issue of trying to resolve conflicts as quickly as possible within a short span of time. In this episode’s case, Croix was finally able to use the Noir Rod to reach the Grand Triskelion only to be trolled out of the reward she expected by Woodward, and Akko unlocked the Gran Triskelion with the last Word. The only plot-line that doesn’t feel like it’s moving at hyperspeed is the subplot of Andrew trying to resolve the diplomatic troubles that England has to face with the soccer riots, but it’s connection with Croix’s Noir Fuel Spirit doesn’t make it feel any less out-of-place in the show. Snooty old aristocrats talking about using political strife for their own gain has been the least engaging aspect of the series, but it plays the most important role as the conflict that the witches at Luna Nova have to face for the finale.

And it’s a shame because they really could have given more time to fleshing out Croix and Ursula’s relationship. They’ve only touched on it slightly in flashbacks and brief encounters where Ursula is saving Akko, but it’s easily one of the aspects of the show that intrigued me the most because of how well it relates to Akko’s journey. Croix’s breakdown cuts into how a bulk of her motivation was to be acknowledged for her hard work only to be shunned left and right, culminating in Woodward trolling her with a twig as a reward for her troubles. We’ve seen Croix as a mostly one-sided jerk character with short spurts of compassion, but seeing Croix before Chariot was granted the Shiny Rod would’ve honed in on the positive qualities to her character that are open for development once she puts aside her resentment. Her breakdown also opened the door for her to right any of the wrongs she did to get to her goals as she actively tried to undo the damaging effects of her magic, and protect Ursula from the mess she made.

On top of this, Ursula’s compassion towards Croix gave her depth that also could’ve been fleshed out more. Even after having her own dream sabotaged by Croix, Ursula still felt she owed her all this time for having the responsibility her friend could only dream of having. Ursula saddles on a lot of regrets, but we don’t see enough of the good times that Croix and Chariot shared, so it feels like we’re stuck just having to trust the show’s instincts that they had a good enough relationship for Ursula to feel this terrible. It also would’ve made it more rewarding for us to see Akko’s equally quick growth. Rather than Chariot and Croix’s relationship fracturing as they repress their emotions, Akko let Ursula know that she doesn’t hold any resentment for her taking her magic when her decision to become a witch and the resolve to trust in herself is thanks to Chariot’s inspiration. It helps set up the contrast between Chariot and Akko’s paths, yet intertwines their trajectory enough to have them compliment one another. How Akko can relate to and overcome the same struggles that Croix, and Chariot faced in their past is very significant to her story as she further develops her magical prowess, but this has only been lightly touched upon within the last few episodes.

That being said, the show does an effective job at ramping up the stakes to their highest. With the Noir Rod manifesting into a nuclear rocket heading to the moon at the same time Akko is celebrating the Grand Triskelon’s reawakening. For all the points that I wish were improved upon, I think that the show is doing a great job at keeping me invested in the overarching story, and leaves me hopeful with the possibility that we’ll leave Akko, Ursula, and Chariot’s stories on a high note next week.

「轟VS爆豪」 (Todoroki VS Bakugo)
“Todoroki vs. Bakugo”

If we could harness the power of Bakugo’s rage, we could power our civilization for millennia to come.

The Todoroki vs Bakugo fight was disappointing, in a highly compelling way. Disappointing because, after Bakugo vs Uraraka and Todoroki vs Izuku, it was over too quickly and without a ton of flash, bang, or sizzle. Compelling, though, because what happened speaks volumes about Shouto, Katsuki, and even Izuku, in ways that will directly propel their stories going forward.

Katsuki is the one that most interests me. It’s impressive how Horikoshi-sensei built up to Katsuki’s explosion over Shouto not using his flames, and not even wanting to win the damn medal if he couldn’t beat the best opponent fighting at their best. From Shouto’s declaration to Izuku through every event up until now, he was always striving in that berserker way that so typifies Katsuki—though what I most like is the moment he barged into the wrong waiting room, and admitted his mistake. That, along with how Katsuki was saying nearly the same thing to Shouto as Izuku did before, though for different reasons, show why he isn’t a lost cause. Dude has some anger problems, natch, but he isn’t a villain, and as long as all that rage is channeled to good ends, he can remain a force for good in the world. If his pride doesn’t crush him first.

Though, saying Katsuki has some anger problems might be the understatement of the century. His face is amazing. Moving on!

Going into this episode, I never expected the second half to all be about family, though I’m happy it was. Tenya and his older brother—oof. That one hit hard. To see one’s personal hero, and older brother to boot, laid up like that is bound to shake him to the core. Then there was Shouto and his mother, his starting line—the person he must save to truly start on his hero journey, just as his father is the villain he must defeat. We couldn’t have had the great Bakugo vs Todoroki fight we all wanted to see without sacrificing this scene. That fight can wait; this was needed now.

All of which was juxtaposed by Ochako’s parents coming to visit, and aren’t they just the greatest! Them + Izuku’s mom talking about how she kept losing consciousness (occasionally from dehydration, hah!) after finding out that he has a quirk now were just PRECIOUS! It’s like the old quote: “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” They might not be as compellingly fractured as Shouto’s families, but sometimes it’s nice to see some kids in fiction have a healthy home-life.

Then there’s Katsuki, getting after those damn germs. Hah! That kid is an idiot. An angry, angry idiot.

Going forward, Izuku’s quest will be to obtain the part of the All Might package he’s been missing: the smile. He’s got the strength, now he just needs to use it in a way that doesn’t make others worry. That’s good, because he can only keep breaking his body in school functions so many times before it feels like the administrators are being negligent. New challenge accepted!

Random thoughts:

• What’s wrong with your eeeeeye.

My SECOND novel, Freelance Heroics, is available now! (Now in print!) (Also available: Firesign #1 Wage Slave Rebellion.) Sign up for my email list for exclusive content. At stephenwgee.com, the last four posts: I get it now!; Guardians of the Galaxy, Glee, & Firesign; That’s not supposed to go there . . .; and The Carcer Principle.

Preview

「軒下のモンスター We cannot decide where we go but you can.」 (Nokishita no Monsutaa)
“The Monster Under the Eaves We cannot decide where we go but you can.”

For all the threats of an imminent recap or special episode, it seems Re:Creators decided we could put that off in favour of a little denouement after a wild last week. Probably will irritate a few given the show’s foray into dialogue heavy narrative once again, but to Re:Creators’ benefit the overall picture just became clearer, especially in regards to Souta and Setsuna. Our self-described narrator might still be a dweeb, but he’s certainly getting a hold of himself.

I’ve always held out hope that Souta would mentally improve over time, and it looks like such thoughts were not misplaced. Revealing the truth to everyone is a big first step for Souta, getting him out of his self-defeating spiral of depression and into a more constructive “what can I do?” mindset. This is needed development because it removes one of Re:Creators’ more prominent thorns and opens up additional story options. Until now Souta has largely held down serious story progression, his depressive regret needing attention alongside Altair’s presence and the weekly Magane shenanigans. Getting rid of that allows Re:Creators to instead focus on Souta’s role and how he can assist with defeating Altair—in effect tying Souta in properly with the current plot objective. This is not to say Souta’s mental wrangling was wrongly handled—that is up to personal opinion—but not deliberately dragging it out for several episodes is quite satisfying and keeps the show on track.

The real key moving forward, however, will be what Souta’s role becomes because the convenient option—Souta somehow revising Altair—just went off the table. While we still lack half the story behind Setsuna’s (or Yuna’s) death, Souta shockingly never had a role in Altair’s creation—no art, no character profile, nothing. Although we likely will learn the full story next episode, the current backstory suggests Altair is a caricature, Setsuna’s personal, stylized finger to the world. Since Setsuna probably poured every ounce of her anguish and suffering into Altair, it’s not hard imagining Altair acquiring similar loathing and detestation not only of the real world, but of fellow created worlds—those were the source of Setsuna’s grief after all. In a way Altair became Setsuna’s revenge upon the world much like Celestia was Takashi’s proof he actually lived. Conversely, Altair is also the price Souta paid for abandoning Setsuna at her most vulnerable. Re:Creators’ premise therefore is not so much stopping Altair’s plan, but Souta atoning for his treatment of Setsuna by taking away the need for Altair to go through with it. How the dweeb could actually talk down Altair is anyone’s guess—if it’s even a legitimate option—but it’s where all current signs are pointing to at the moment. Just have to wait and see what additional information next episode brings.

With Souta’s and Altair’s function increasingly becoming clear, the only other unknown left is our fiend friend Magane. If I’m right on Souta being required to stop Altair, Miss Crazy’s function as final boss doesn’t appear all that farfetched, particularly if Altair—as evidenced last week—is the only real means of stopping Magane. Could a Magane imbued with multiple stolen character powers be the true enemy? No bloody idea, but considering some new characters are confirmed upcoming, you can at least bet on things getting crazy(er). Re:Creators may be halfway through, but the real action has yet to begin.

「叫び」 (Sakebi)
“Scream”

With the final episode of the season upon us, it’s only fitting that we get one of the best episodes of the franchise to send us off, and virtually everything we got here worked to maximize the emotional impact and give us an adrenaline rush worthy of a fight with humanity’s future at stake. Unfortunately, such stakes tend to require sacrifices, and Hannes ends up biting the dust—at the hands of the same Titan that killed Eren’s mother no less—along with Erwin’s right arm and half of the Scouts veterans. It’s a high price to pay—I can’t see Erwin in particular coming into the picture much after this, and we all know how important his presence alone has been—but one that ends up potentially worth the losses. After an entire season dancing around the issue, Eren finds himself capable of controlling Titans as the one code-named the “Coordinate,” and suddenly we have one key revelation to balance around the many questions we’ve had so far. The fact that it could change the entire tide of the fight for humanity’s survival only makes it that much better, even if we’ll end up waiting up to another year to see what happens from here.

With that said, this was an episode that was significant not only for its developments, but how it made many things come full circle. For one, the arrival of the Titan that killed Eren’s mother meant that—with Reiner and Bertholdt included as the Armored and Colossal Titan respectively—everyone responsible for changing the course of Eren and Mikasa’s lives have not only reassembled, but have done so at a time where Eren finds himself truly stepping into his role as humanity’s potential savior. At the same time, the fact that said Titan dies in a similar fashion to how it killed Eren’s mother makes it a tremendously fitting method of revenge, even if it wasn’t exactly intended. Similarly, having Historia come into her own—those thirty seconds with the insert theme “Barricades” playing in the background was beautifully done—only adds to the significance of it all by culminating all the development she’s been given this season, and even Ymir’s decision to rescue and run with Reiner and Bertholdt ends up just as fitting due to their natures as Human Titans that have either lost or never really felt as though they had a place within the walls.

Suffice to say, there was much to like about this season finale, and much to look forward to in the future as a result too—especially with things pointing toward all Titans potentially having human cores. The question about how they didn’t find proof of this earlier in the form of remains from their human cores aside, it’s a significant revelation that changes the entire dynamic of the war, and both Levi and Erwin’s expressions end up representative of the feelings every Scout privy to the information is likely feeling. As Erwin says, they’re finally one step closer to the truth. The problem is that they’ve endured a tremendous loss to get there, and with the rate of losses as is, it isn’t a cost humanity can afford to pay for just one step. The fact they’ve been potentially fighting and killing humans rather than “mindless monsters” also exerts a potential mental toll on top of things, and as we’ve seen this season in particular, it’s certainly an element that plays a large part in a soldier’s success.

With that said—and I’m probably in the minority in this regard—but I think this was a season that took a step backwards in some respects. However much they wanted to play up the mystery and highlight the individual natures of each soldier and cast member, the fact remains that they spent much of the season bringing up and repeating questions that we likely won’t receive answers to for a long time. At the same time, there was little to no addition to the story in terms of revelations and developments until the very end, and the pacing dragged throughout much of the season as a result. Granted, Episode 32 and this finale made many of the season’s low points arguably worth the price of admission, but if anything—the greatness of those two episodes merely highlighted how the series falls short when deviating away from combat and the simpler stories it told in the first season, which felt much more consistent and enjoyable across the board.

In particular, I’m still torn about what to feel about Reiner and Bertholdt. I mean, the fact that Reiner has a clear mental condition sufficed as an explanation regarding some of what he’s done up until this point, but through it all, I can’t find myself satisfied with that being the sole explanation behind everything he did before he destroyed the walls and after. I suppose much of this is because I felt that his condition makes it all too easy to say “I don’t remember” or “I don’t know why” when pressed for answers in the future, though I guess time will tell in regards to whether or not I’ll look back to this moment and just go “ah, that worked out better than expected.”

As I mentioned before though, it’s important to point out that for all its supposed shortcomings, the franchise as a whole has done much to at least meet much of the hype that surrounded it previously. At the very least, I’ve enjoyed Shingeki a lot more than some of the hyped series of past years, and you can definitely count me in as someone who looks forward to seeing what the series has in store for its upcoming third season. Until then, we can only wait, and here’s hoping we’ll all meet again once the time comes.

Author’s Note: Once again, please refrain from spoilers of the source material past what’s been covered so far. Use spoiler tags if you absolutely need to mention something that wasn’t explicitly shown/covered, as there is a zero tolerance policy in effect and comments with spoilers will be immediately deleted and bans handed out where necessary.