I will never understand the Japanese mind, especially in the anime way. It’s that a lot of shows I see tend to reinforce the idea that the government is going to take care of you, but it comes off as quite authoritarian. So, you have no say in how the government takes care of you. It’s good for society, but not necessarily for you. Despite this rather dour opening, we look at the dramedy of “Koi to Uso” (“Love and Lies”).
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More Japanese weirdness. OK, sure, this is another “Girls Who Save the World” tale, but what they are doing is saving their city from neglect. Huh? Wha? Eh? This is more of a way to promote the virtues of your particular city, and this is done via ‘action heroines’, some superhero girl who battles the baddies, while extolling some aspect of the city she represents. Well, everyone wants to get in on the act and Hinano City is no different. Thus we have “Action Heroines Cheer Fruits” (“Akushon Hiroin Chia Furūtsu”). (more…)

And here is the ‘two’ of the one-two punch. Another of those very harsh private academies animes, this one is truly a classroom of the elite, but that’s not what we are trying to accomplish with “Kakegurui” (or “Kakegurui – Compulsive Gambler”).  (more…)

This is part of a one-two punch review in regards to Japanese schools and their educational system. Most animes use the schools as a jumping-off point to look at some harem rom-com or superhero education, so the school is more background or a platform for these events, rather than part and parcel of the whole approach. These particular shows I am scrutinizing look at the school itself and the academic mindset that drives them along. It seems harsh and cruel by our standards. Hell, it’s harsh and cruel by the Marquis de Sade’s standards! It makes one wonder if all private academies are like this. If they were any tougher, you might as well be training to be a Navy SEAL. Our first scholastic offering is “Classroom of the Elite” (“Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijō Shugi no Kyōshitsu e”, or “Welcome to the Classroom of the Supreme Ability Doctrine”). (more…)

A trope in and of itself, members of faith are usually portrayed as a caliber of charlatan or deceiver and are potentially as evil as the evil they are fighting, and usually at the expense of those they purport to be saving. But we are working both with and against this trope with “Vatican Miracle Examiner” (“Bachikan Kiseki Chōsakan”). (more…)

This first came up as an offering at AX 17, but since there was zero description in the handbook about it, my initial thought that it was going to be a stupid rom-com, about a princess who, for whatever reason, has to be the principal of a high school for a year and learns about ‘commoners’ and their problems. I could not have been more wrong, as it is an Alternate Universe Steampunk Spy Drama. Thus we arrive at “Princess Principal” (“Purinsesu Purinshiparu”). (more…)

When the show “New Game!” came out, I had two big problems with it. The first was the overwhelming female cast in it (men were there, but certainly background at best) and the fact that for trying to put out a video game, there was a decided lack of pressure. The game would come out when it would come out. Not very realistic. With the second season of “New Game!! 2” (“Nyū Gēmu!! 2”) upon us, they have at least raised the stakes a bit. (more…)

Latin is a funny language, in that it is used mostly in the scientific naming of things and in any column from George Will. There are useful phrases, but you may end up having to explain them, so it loses its punch. The phrase ‘ne plus ultra’ means ‘nothing greater beyond’, so you have reached your zenith. However, for the second season of this show, it is “My Hero Academia: Plus Ultra”. (more…)

The biggest problem with any show that deals in magic is that it is all going to be referred back to ‘Harry Potter’ and how they did it. It can put a damper on things, as you want to let all of these institutions and locales teach magic and all its complexities in their own manner. It’s just that “Little Witch Academia” started out practically like a Harry Potter rip-off. (more…)

As much as I like “Food Wars!”, it can get too much for its own good, with those foodgasms and the overweening prats that infest the school. So when another dining series cropped up, I wanted to check it out. This is the bailiwick of “Isekai Shokudō” (“Restaurant to Another World”). (more…)