Ohana Means “Family”

December 31st, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

[WARNING: Brisk language]

OK, there are a lot of animes that I couldn’t fucking WAIT for the next episode to show up (or two episodes, in my case, as that is how I like it). They include “Attack on Titan” (until it got stupid), “Black Clover” (until IT got stupid), “Erased” (until the last two episodes, when it got stupid), and “Spice and Wolf” (until they decided NOT to have a third season, the fuckers; please excuse the salty language, as I have had to endure a lot of fucking stupidity from the fucking parent companies).

We can also argue as to whether “Spy X Family” is either having a ‘Second Season’ or ‘Season One, Part Two’ (but I JUST found out it is the latter). You know, marketing and whether or not you have the gumption to wait for a combined disk and not piecemeal it, right? It’s all corporate greed. Who the fuck cares on that part of it? I mean, this is one goddam fabulous show. (more…)

A “Monster” of a Time

December 27th, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

It doesn’t matter what kind of organization you are in, whether is it something as simple as an office setting, where you may have a dozen or so employees, to something more complex like running the First Order, where you have billions of employees, you are going to get gummed up by the bureaucracy. It’s always the same complaints: not enough money, not enough manpower, not enough creative thinking, not enough money, lamebrains messing up your projects, diffident co-workers and not enough money. And if you ARE trying to take over the world, the logistics can get out of control. Such is the world we visit when we come to the enormously-titled Miss Kuroitsu from the Monster Development Department” (“Kaijin Kaihatsubu no Kuroitsu-san”, “Kuroitsu-san in the Superhuman Research & Development Department”).
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It’s Just Over That “Rise”

December 26th, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Another example of having a bad capsule description, this had two things going against it when I first glanced at it, in that it was sports (Wrestling? Really?) and it was the next in line for isekai tales (What? Really?) But since I was in my ‘what-CAN-I-watch?’ viewing distress, I took it on, and, boy howdy, this is one deliciously stupid show that takes both of these genres and gives it a major German suplex, and a real mat slam. Welcome to the high-octane world of ”Kemono Michi: Rise Up”  (“Hataage! Kemonomichi”). (more…)

Short Pull Series XXXIII – Lacking “Reason”

December 22nd, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews, Short Run Series by

We have always viewed dragons as proud and dangerous creatures. They breathe fire. They crush people underfoot. They lay waste to those around them. They hoard gold. They can fly. I mean, THEY CAN FLY!!! You do not want to mess with them. Even the bravest of the brave have second thoughts when they have to go up against dragons, even if it is a ‘little’ dragon. (Hahahaha! You said ‘little’ like it makes a difference! Hahahahahaha!). Well, what if the dragon was as big of a doofus as the rest of us? (Look, I believe in recycling. Just think of this intro as the return visit). We meet another less-than-meets-the-eye dragon in the mile-long titled “A Herbivorous Dragon of 5,000 Years Gets Unfairly Villainized (“Yowai 5000-nen no Sōshoku Dragon, Iwarenaki Jaryū Nintei”, or “A 5000-year-old Herbivore Dragon Was Recognized as an Evil Dragon For No Reason”). (more…)

In the Dog “House”

December 20th, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

We have always viewed dragons as proud and dangerous creatures. They breathe fire. They crush people underfoot. They lay waste to those around them. They hoard gold. They can fly. I mean, THEY CAN FLY!!! You do not want to mess with them. Even the bravest of the brave have second thoughts when they have to go up against dragons, even if it is a ‘little’ dragon. (Hahahaha! You said ‘little’ like it makes a difference! Hahahahahaha!). Well, what if the dragon was as big of a doofus as the rest of us? What if instead of soaring through the skies, blotting out the sun and inspiring fear and trembling, they are just as hapless as mere mortals? Thus is the idea behind “Dragon Goes House-Hunting” (“Dragon, Ie o Kau” orDragon, Buy a House”.) (more…)

“No Time” Like the Present

December 1st, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Normally, I wouldn’t touch a vampire anime with a ten-foot wooden stake. I feel it is a badly overworked genre, as there is seemingly little more you can bring to it, unless you want to see tons of impalements and neck biting and spurting fountains of blood and other unpleasantness. However, when you are confronted with the title of “The Vampire Dies in No Time” (“Kyūketsuki Sugu Shinu”), it deserves at least a few minutes of time from your busy day, especially as you want to see how they are going to make a full series of it. (more…)

Playing “Dress-Up”

November 29th, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Cosplay is as ingrained into Japanese culture as is sake and pork cutlet bowls. Perhaps they feel they actually invented it, but they have certainly gone to great lengths to perfect it. It’s just that I do not personally recall a show that looks at cosplay in a mature manner; the people who do it are wholly, solely committed to it, especially in trying to pull off just the right look (which can be really hard if you take on someone like, say, Alphonse Elric) without mocking them. Thus, we have “My Dress-Up Darling” (“Sono Bisuku Dōru wa Koi o Suru”, or “That Bisque Doll Falls in Love”). (more…)

She’s An “Ex” For a Reason

November 22nd, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Romantic comedies are hard to pull off effectively, in that the combatants (for wont of a better term) need to be smart enough to understand why they do what they do, but just clueless enough to allow the events to unfold as they need to for the story to be told. It doesn’t always work, as when other parts are brought into the mix that may or may not complicate things, and that is how we get to “My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex” (“Mamahaha no Tsurego ga Motokano datta, or “My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex-Girlfriend”). (more…)

“Wise” Too Late

November 3rd, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Is this another anime trend I see before me? Now, gender change comedies have been with us since the Greeks took ink to paper (or whatever they wrote on). We can discuss “Some Like it Hot”, “Victor/Victoria”, “The Hot Chick” (OK, NOT ‘The Hot Chick”; that one was terrible!) and into the mix we fling another montrapatiously-titled show “She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man (“Kenja no Deshi o Nanoru Kenja”), which also doubles as part of the video game genre for anime. (more…)

“Ordinary” People

November 1st, 2022 in Anime, General Reviews by

Hey! It another gender-blender show. I hope that this isn’t the latest anime craze, especially since the focus of these shows is what once was a guy is now a gal. And it’s an isekai as well, so, all bets are off. We find ourselves in the reshaped world of…(take a deep breath; it’s a long title)… “Life with an Ordinary Guy Who Reincarnated into a Total Fantasy Knockout”  (“Fantajī Bishōjo Juniku Ojisan to”, or “With a Fogie Reincarnated as a Pretty Fantasy Girl”, which has been abbreviated as “Fabiniku”). And since we have thrown everything into it, including the kitchen sink, well, it certainly has a lot to take in, so here we go. (more…)