This was something that I had not seen before at AX, or maybe I did, but I paid it no heed. It’s just this was a very popular stand that I needed to find out more about, as there was always a line in front of it, even worse than trying to see the “Trash Taste” boys. (more…)

I had resisted this show for some time. I have a hard time with music genres and sports genres, as they are quite similar in their approach: someone wants to make it, but the odds are long and the opportunities are short. The road before them is littered with the bleaching bones of those who went before and failed. (“Fortune favors the brave.” No, it doesn’t, Matt!) But, somehow, through diligence, talent, commitment and a bit of pixie dust, they can achieve their dream. Am I right? Right? However, the offering before us, “Ya Boy Kongming!” (“Paripi Kōmei” or “Kongming of the Party People”) tells this story in a most charming and interesting way. (more…)

Demons, demons, demons. There does seem to be a fascination with demons, especially when we present them as more humanish than demonoidal. I mean, most of us see demons as someone who will burn you up or mow you down or cleave you in twain. Yeah, you might want to get some kind of PR firm to help burnish that image a touch. But what happens when a demon come after you for a debt that a relative owes them? How did this happen? Such is the premise behind Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits” (“Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi”, or “Afterlife Inn Cooking”). Oh, did I forget to mention it’s also a kind of cooking show? Oh, did I forget to mention it’s also a kind of isakai? Oh, did I forget to mention it’s also a kind of romance? Man, I would lose my head if it wasn’t screwed on to my shoulders. *THUNK* (more…)

There are a group of fictional characters that have been played to death, either in movie or on stage. These include such ‘people’ as James Bond, Frankenstein’s monster, Hamlet and Sherlock Holmes. This also includes anyone billed as such, like “Basil of Baker Street”, which was a cartoon approach to Sherlock, and, with what you have with this show, “Kyōto Teramachi Sanjō no Holmes” (or, “Kyōto Teramachi Sanjō no Hōmuzu”, or “Holmes of Kyoto”). (more…)

Oh, no! It’s a ghost! It’s a haunting! It’s a hot springs! We must protect the world, or at least parts of Japan, from those bad, evil, nasty, mean, ugly, cruel, vicious and rotten ghosts that will bedevil the lives of common citizen who merely want to take advantage of a lovely locale to soak away their stress! Well, things are never as they seem and such is the case with “Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs.” (“Yuragi-sō no Yūna-san”) (more…)

Now, unless you got a hotel room at the J W Marriott or the Ritz-Carlton (so close to the venue, you could spit on the people down below. Note: Please don’t do that, OK?), you’re going to have to avail yourself of the shuttle buses. Now, this, in and of itself, is not all that bad. They come at regular-ish intervals, so you need not wait too long, especially in front of your hotel, early in the morning. A lot of the street people will stare at you, because you look like Sailor Moon (still a very popular cosplay option) or Sephiroth and his ten-mile sword. It’s just that you ARE dealing with humanity and things can go south faster than you realize, both outside and inside. (more…)

There is always a problem when you try to put together a show about the human body. For the most part, the body is seen as some kind of community or village or great megalopolis (think like “Osmosis Jones”) and how everyone gets along together, but the analogies don’t always work well, especially when to have to show how things function. But we make a real attempt with “Cells at Work.” (“Hataraku Saibō”). (more…)

We use the term ‘Frankenstein’ to indicate a soulless monster, cobbled together from the parts of other corpses. It’s even used in reality TV, to indicate that things have been cut and pasted together to give a different impression than what happened originally. But for this show, “Frankenstein Family”, (also known as “Creatures Family Days”, “Shiyan Pin Jiating, Jikken-hin Kazoku”), it’s more to indicate they are a caliber of monster or mutant, but I guess “Mutant Family” might have a bigger connotation problem than merely being called ‘Frankenstein’. (more…)

Now, with AX being at the Staples Center crypto.com Arena, it is somewhat easy to get to. There is a subway line that runs close to it (provided you are near a stop. The Biltmore is.) and the shuttle buses are, for the most part, reliable and safe (but more on that later). Driving your car to the venue gets pricey, at $20 a day. But one mode of transportation that was as ubiquitous about the area as discarded Starbucks cups were eScooters. (more…)

So, it is common knowledge that the Japanese will make an anime series on practically ANYTHING. I mean, there’s one that delves into the fascinating world of….being a public servant! And I saw another one about the struggles to create….a new dictionary!!!! (Be still my beating heart. It is hot in here or what?) So when I ran into this one, “Chio’s School Road” (“Chio-chan no Tsūgakuro”, or “Chio’s Commute to School”), I was ready for the caliber of boredom usually reserved for things like being trapped at the Cleveland Airport for a week. Boy, was I wrong. I mean, about the show, not the Cleveland Airport. (more…)