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[ TL/DR : good short movie about depressed teens finding the will to go on after meeting a ghost.]

Life is beautiful and yet sometimes it feels like a curse. Sometimes one fails to cope with the unfairness of this world and ends up giving up thinking perhaps death might be a better option than their accursed life. But sometimes maybe all it takes is to view life from a different angle and realise how it should be.

" Summer Ghost " is a story about 3 high school students who happened to meet through the Internet being curious about a summer ghost who is ... rumored to appear when fireworks are lit.

Our characters here are highschool school students and has the usual problems bullying, illness and career choice. Everyone has their fair share of struggles and are brought together by a common goal of finding the summer ghost in order to seek reason, necessity of existing. The Summer Ghost herself is an interesting character having a story to tell and having an influence in the life of our characters.

I liked how the characters interacted despite this being a 39 min movie. This movie was pretty simple and with a single goal and clear cut message which for a short movie is enough. The environment of this movie is amazing its sad yet calming which within a short period of time can immerse you within.

It reminded me of "Hotarubi no Mori e" which was another good short movie. Though they are totally different both of these movies gave me a soothing yet a bit depressing feel.

It's beautiful how a few words on a piece of paper can mean so much. Letters have been a precious and sometimes crucial medium of communication for people throughout history and Violet Evergarden highlights this basic part of our life wonderfully. Letters may have become less convenient nowadays but the joy of receiving a letter, receiving the feelings conveyed is still unmatched.
It's never just a letter. The connection, feeling, emotions involved makes it complete.

Violet Evergarden Movie serves as the closure of a series that will have a very special place in my heart. Violet's journey towards becoming a human has been a wonderful emotional ... ride. Every encounter with her clients is what made this show so special and definitely my most favourite parts of the entire series. Getting to know their story was wonderful. Sometimes the series filled us with joy sometimes with sorrow but these precious moments is what made Violet Evergarden beautiful.

Violet Evergarden Movie is the continuation from the events occurred previously in the series. Unlike the series this time the focus is a bit more on Violet instead of writing letters for her clients. Even after pursuing the meaning of love and having found it Violet could never forget and let go of her beloved Major Gilbert. This movie is an emotional romantic drama involving Violet, Gilbert and everyone within with Love at it's core.

Although this movie's purpose is Violet chasing and conveying her feelings for Gilbert it does not forget the most beautiful part, conveying people's words and feelings into a letter. We got to see another new client of Violet who appeared with yet another heart touching and heavy story which is enough to make you teary eyed.

The end might be a bit melodramatic but the movie was undoubtedly a treat to watch. Animation and soundtracks need no new appreciation because we all know how good KyoAni can be when it comes to these. Special appreciation for Yui Ishikawa (Violet), Takehito Koyasu (Hodgins) and Daisuke Namikawa (Gilbert) they did a wonderful job voicing the characters.

This movie was a perfect sequel and a beautiful way to pull the curtains. I really enjoyed this ride. Would definitely recommend to everyone.

[ TL/DR : Honestly this anime was kinda dumpster fire-ish. If you like a creepy adult stalking a high schooler and forcing his love on her which ultimately becomes mutual then this anime is for you. ]

>> STORY :
The story is very simple. Amakusa Ryou a 27 year old office worker was saved by a 17 year old High schooler, Ichika while he slipped in a train station.
Ryou immediately fell in love with her and incidentally Ichika happened to be his younger sister's best friend. By fate he met her at his home with her sister and immediately confessed and got rejected.

And thus an annoying ... story of Amakusa Ryou harassing Ichika begins. Even though she rejects him, calls him creepy and disgusting and clearly says "no" to him, Ryou doesn't back down. He stalks her, send her gifts everyday, calls her every night and it goes on and on to the point she starts feeling something for him.

>> Characters :
Every character in this anime lacks depth. You can't really connect with anyone and all of them are pretty forgettable.

Starting with Ryou, he is a two faced guy. At office he is a cool headed guy dedicated to his work and the type woman would kill for in the anime. But outside that infront of Ichika he loses his mind and becomes a creepy lovestruck man.

Ichika on the other hand is an average highschooler with a normal life but she is very indecisive. She doesn't really have a strong character never being able to decide what she wants. There are times where her decision making can be really annoying.

Rio is Amakusa's younger sister and honestly she felt like the better character throughout the entire show. She is mature, level headed and handles both Amakusa and Ichika very welll.
But lack of screentime killed her. The anime never focused on her even a bit making her just a mean for Amakusa and Ichika to get together.

There are characters in this anime who were introduced solely for the purpose of being rejected and as soon as that was done, that was it for them.

>> Animation and Soundtracks :
The animation in this anime is very basic. It's the type you see in almost every generic slice of life, nothing too special.
The soundtracks are the same, very basic and doesn't really make the scenes any better although I did like the ending song 『Linaria』by MaRuRi to Ryuga.

>> Character design :
Just like the animation the character designs are also nothing noteworthy. No unique designs and sometimes it's inconsistent.

>> Overall :
"Age doesn't matter in love" yes that might be the case but not how this anime portrayed it. Someone possessive and manipulative creeping you out even after you reject them is never okay.

There are better animes showing age distant romantic relationships in a much more acceptable manner than this. This type of obsessive behaviour as shown in the anime is really harmful and dangerous.

Taking everything into account this anime was in no way memorable. Even if I do I'll probably remember it as a creepy anime.
A lot of moments in this anime disgusted me. But one thing I will say I did enjoy was Ichika's reactions. She has some really different ways to express how disgusted she is toward Ryou and the reactions are probably worth watching.

It can make you laugh but it can also make you creeped out on how f***ed up the story is.
But we weebs love seeing things like this so if you find it acceptable then go ahead and give it a try.

[ TL/DR : This is anime of the season contender. It has been beautifully adapted and wonderfully handled by the studio to tell us a rather tragic tale of war, racism and the consequence of peace. Seriously give 86 a try.]

>> Story :
86 is a military mecha anime showing a military powerhouse known as the Republic of San Magnolia battle against their enemy Giadian Empire.

86 showed us a wonderful story of the cruel nature of war, racism and what the so called peace was built on.
On one hand u have the residents of Alba Kingdom living in peace and on the other u have ... the 86 who are forced into a war which screams certain death. Deprived of the luxury of freedom the 86 fight for their lives daily in order to live another day.

>> Characters :
Racism is at the core of this anime. But not all bad are actually bad. We've been reminded of this constantly by the actions of Major Milize or commonly known as Lena.
Lena is a Republican soldier, ranked Major at a very young age and is tasked with the "Spearhead Squadron" as their handler.

Lena's character had huge development throughout the season. Starting as an optimistic young soldier she slowly learns the truth of their actions in the war and that the "no casualties" was actually a lie told by the Republicans to cement the inhuman killing of 86.
The psychological trauma and strain that Lena faces being a handler of a squadron she can't protect has been portrayed masterfully.

Lena's actions to treat her squadron as actual human beings rather than just tools is one of the many things to love about her. I loved her strong spirit despite being picked on by the 86 which eventually made them love her too.
Helpless as she may be, she still tries her best to provide for her squad from where she stands.

And then we have the 86 who tries to live their life to the fullest and stay cheerful for the remaining days they have. Led by commander Shin codenamed "Undertaker".
All of the members of the 86 squadron are well written and some more so than others (without spoiling). You can really connect with the characters, feel their emotions and want them to live and see all this to the end.

While all of them have a past of some sort the most interesting story is of course of their commander Shin who seems to be the most mysterious among the 86. Shin's story and his journey is beautiful and yet really emotional.
Shin is also known as the Reaper in his squadron who is tasked with carrying the names of the fallen with him towards the end of their journey.

>> Animation :
The art style and animation of this anime is simply beautiful. I loved the minute details and structures shown in it.
The visual of the terrains are something worth admiring. 86 moves from the flashy City of Republic to the rundown base of 86 to the messy battlefield and then to forestry. All of these has been animated to perfection and are simply pleasing to the eye.
The action scenes in the battlefield are CGI which blends really well with the background so as to not make us uneasy as many animes do with CGI.

>> Music and Soundtrack :
Musics in 86 are composed by the G.O.A.T Hiroyuki Sawano himself and Kohta Yamamoto.
Needless to say by just seeing their name you know you'll get good music and specially from Sawano.
Ost's in 86 are just amazing. The suspense and emotions they add to the already brilliant scenes makes it outstanding. I've been hearing 86 playlist on repeat for quite some time now "The Answer" being my favourite.
The OP and the ED are amazing as well. While the OP is a banger to start the show the ending is a rather emotional one, specially when it plays in some scenes at the end of the episode.

All I can say is the musics were spot on.

>> Overall opinion :
Watching 86 has been a wonderful emotional journey for me. It felt a bit off at the start ngl. I didn't really feel committed to it in the first couple of episodes but boy did it not just get better by episode to episode.
I loved the pacing. Many animes usually adapt more than 1 volume in season 1 or rush a lot but like I said before A-1 pictures handled it beautifully, adapting the first volume only.
I've spoken with some novel readers and all of them were really pleased about the adaptation of 86. Needless to say the adaptation was definitely praiseworthy.

86 has been an anime I've looked forward to every week. Each episode by itself was wonderful and by the end of the season it has now left me hollowed. Can't wait to pick up the light novel now to read what happens next.

If you haven't watched 86 or dropped it from the first episodes I suggest u give it another shot because trust me its amazing and definitely worth your valuable time.

In a season which brought us pain from To Your Eternity, 86, Link Click, Vivy etc. "Super Cub" has been a blessing.

A Modern Iyashikei sponsored by Honda featuring Cubs has been an underrated gem this season.
But this anime isn't just all about some honda rides. Loneliness turned to friendships, depression to joy and the taste of adventure was the theme of Super Cub.
Artistic direction and details in the animation makes it even more enjoyable to watch.

Super Cub is in it's truest sense a Slice of life to warm our hearts. You wouldn't expect much going into the series but soon you will be consumed by ... it's beautiful calm nature. It's saddening that it didn't get popular enough but it's undoubtedly one of the better animes of the season.

If you love Iyashikei and are looking for some relaxing and soothing anime this is the perfect one for you. And what's great is you can watch this for free on YouTube in Muse Asia's channel if you are from South Asia.