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Feb 22, 2025
I’d say at its peak this show is incredibly engaging, I’m a huge fan of how this is directed. However those peaks aren’t frequent.
The characters are really fun and the animation is pretty good for the time, my main issues come with the story and the redundancy of each arc when the same guy comes back each time. It’s like a video game where each boss battle is against the same person, and this can be fine, but each time you are supposed to believe that he died and with each time he doesn’t it’s a little harder to actually engage with the stakes.
Still a
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lot to love here, and worth the watch. Sousuke and Chidori’s dynamic is definitely the highlight, at least for me.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 9, 2025
Satoshi Kon gifts the world with his beautiful form of storytelling. There are more car crashes in this movie than in most isekai and that is a compliment to the highest degree.
But seriously, this movie manages to develop its leads so quickly and thoroughly that it makes you adore every one of them by the time the credits roll. If you're anything like me and love character animation then strap in because this movie is filled to the brim with beautiful character animation and expert voice acting.
I could spout on and on about what I love about this movie, but it's only fair that I
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address the elephant in the room. Haru is one of the earliest forms of a trans person in anime, and while this is great and super progressive for the time it has since become a bit dated. Haru comes off as a comic relief character where the idea of a man wanting to be a woman is sometimes the joke. However, I truly believe that Kon made this character with love and support and just didn't have the trans movement to help him treat Haru with the love and respect she would get nowadays.
Still incredibly impressive to even feature a trans character as in the early 2000's a lot of people didn't even know people could feel that way.
This movie is incredible and personally one of my favorite Christmas movies.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jan 8, 2025
As we reach the halfway point in this series I wanted to take a minute to voice my praises and grievances with this show.
Let's start with the good. The animation, albeit inconsistent, is stellar when it shines. The voice acting is unique and really well performed as well. Having a sports anime be so focused on romance is really nice as it combines a group of anime watchers that don't usually interact.
Now for complaints...
Love triangles are hard, they can be fascinating and they can be boring, Blue Box is somewhere in between. I actually really like Hina's character and I'm always happy to see her
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on screen, but I'd be lying if even a single part of me thought she was going to end up with Taiki. As far as I know, the manga still hasn't made a decision, but I think we all know where it's going. Even if by some miracle Hina does win then it just wouldn't feel rewarding as nothing has set that up.
Hina's character is just one we are supposed to feel bad for and that doesn't sit right with me. Instead of sitting in anticipation hoping the character you like wins the protagonist over it's more like watching a third wheel awkwardly interrupt the pacing. Again, I really like Hina as a character, honestly more than Chinatsu, but it feels like a waste.
Love triangles are hard, as I said. It's tough to make it feel close, and it rarely works as well as the author wants it to. I just hope it spins into something more interesting before Hina just gets wasted as a well written fun character.
I can't be too harsh because the chemistry between Taiki and Chinatsu is enough to keep you engaged. The characters are fun and the designs are all great. This show definitely has a lot to offer, I just wish the author honored the love triangle a little bit more instead of using it because it sells.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 8, 2025
This anime is confused.
I have seen, in some form, all adaptations of this work (Anime, Manga, TV Drama) and each one varies in its own ways. For one, the location of the new branch is different, and the general story is moved around a bit. I bring this up because I think this manga/anime wasn't very thoroughly planned out and a lot of the ideas they wanted weren't actively pursued. I think the whole sketchy phone call plot point was quickly identified as out of place and not that interesting, so the end result is just unimpactful and unnecessary.
But still, I have this at a
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seven because the dynamic of the two leads is great! They are really fun to watch, and they are both expertly voice-acted. The episodes that revolve around their chemistry are the show's greatest strengths.
This show loses me when it starts to deviate from the plot and become something else. The drama is marketed as a view of the different kinds of marriages that exist out there, and while that's apparent in the anime that is far from the plot synopsis.
What I'm getting at here is that I think each version of this story is different and focuses somewhere else. I feel the author wanted to fit a lot into this and couldn't commit to one specific version of this story so it feels weaker as a whole. If you love romance anime like I do it's still worth the watch, but it's far from where the author probably wanted it to be and its far from a whole, great experience.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 28, 2024
“My Roommate Is A Cat” is a very simple show that has been done before.
The main character isn’t good with people/doesn’t like people and spends most of their time alone. Until something changes and they are suddenly forced to interact with more and more people. I say this like it's a bad thing, but I truly love these types of shows.
This show strongly reminds me of Barakamon: a struggling artist of some kind who needs to go outside of himself to find ways to make greater art. In Barakmon it’s an island and its people, here it's a cat. Now, I would be
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lying if I said this show was better than Barakamon. In most ways, Barakmon is far superior, but that’s not to say this show doesn’t have a lot to offer. This show thrives at making you go “good for him”. It sounds pretty simple, but it’s been a while since I’ve rooted for a protagonist as much as I rooted for Subaru in this show. Whenever he works up the courage to do something I’m genuinely happy for him.
My biggest gripes with this show come from the cat side of this anime.
The way every episode works is that 70-80% of the episode is dedicated to Subaru and what he’s doing, but then for the last bit of the episode we rewind to the beginning and go through what the cat was experiencing. I hesitate to say this is bad because usually the payoff is sweet and worth it, but it just always felt like these segments were way too long. Part of me thinks the show could have been better without it.
For instance (minor spoilers), there is one episode that plays with the idea that animals can see ghosts and the cat sees Subaru’s parents who died and they tell her to watch over him. It’s sweet sure, but it's way too paranormal for an otherwise hypernormal show. There are other times where I think it works better of course, but I can’t help but think it’s a little unnecessary. I think a lot of shows and movies are afraid to just have normal animals, but sometimes it’s the realism of those pet relationships that makes them hit harder.
Overall, it was a really enjoyable show with some nice characters and moments.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Dec 28, 2024
Odd Taxi was a show that was on my watch list for quite some time, and I’m very happy I got around to it because it was an incredible treat. I knew going into Odd Taxi that it was a mystery and not just a silly show about a walrus who is a taxi driver, but I was thoroughly surprised by how good this anime is.
First off the dialogue is some of the best I've seen. When people think of well-written dialogue in anime most people go straight for the Monogatari series. While I do agree that the dialogue is very good, so much
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of it is relying on ambiguity and the amount of words spoken. I can listen to a whole dialogue from Monogatari and realize at the end that nothing of value was really said. Odd Taxi is very different, it’s banter is incredibly good. There is never a dull moment and it’s not just trying to confuse you like Monogatari so often is. Instead, it all makes sense both in the context of the story as well as the characters. Every conversation is incredibly interesting and it doesn’t pretend to be something it’s not.
I guess my point is that while Monogatari’s writing is really good it comes off as aggressively trying to be good, Odd Taxi’s dialogue is incredibly smooth and natural, while still maintaining a level of intrigue and intelligence.
The twist is also one of the strongest aspects of this show, not because it’s surprising, but rather because they do a great job of telling you it ahead of time in a way that makes you feel smart for noticing, and the reward of it playing out is only heightened
As far as complaints go I don’t have a lot. But, Yano is one of my biggest gripes with the show.
I can enjoy character gimmicks but there’s a certain point where it just doesn’t work for me. When Yano is first introduced I found it a bit charming and funny that he rapped all of the time, but when it became clear that he would exclusively rap I admit I was a little annoyed. Whenever he spoke it felt like it haulted the episode and became a show that was far less enjoyable. Now, thankfully Yano isn’t the most important character ever and he doesn’t get a massive amount of screen time, but he is by far my least favorite part of this otherwise amazing show.
Having a gripe with a character though is a little sad because for me the characters of this show were incredible outside of Yano. Odokawa is an amazing protagonist, unreliable though he may be, he is unique and incredibly fun to watch. Watching Goriki and Shirikawa dig up Odokawas past was also very engaging as I was right by them just as curious. Even the more minor characters like Tanaka and the comedy duo were stupidly well written.
Lastly, everything was connected in the best way. Not a moment felt wasted and the world that was built in this show is impressive beyond belief
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Dec 28, 2024
Right out the gate let me say that I like this move. It's a good movie. Is it a great movie? Meh... Is it one of the best anime movies ever made?
No...
Look, it's cool and all but I think that the praise this movie gets is kind of overplayed. It's definitely a good time and the story is interesting enough, but it lacks the substance I feel a movie with this high of a rating should have. I'm not saying a movie needs to be complicated to be good, but a movie should have more than an interesting premise to offer. The characters are pretty
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blank slates, even if some of their hobbies I think are displayed cleverly at their core it's just Taki is a boy, he likes sports. Mizuha is a girl, she can sew. Obviously, I'm being hyperbolic, but I think my point still stands. Character is where I firmly believe Shinkai struggles the most, and admittedly he's getting better at it with his two newest movies, but the two protagonists here are just way too lackluster for me.
I don't mean to be all negative, because there is still a lot to like. The animation of course is stellar and the voice acting and soundtrack are very strong as well.
No part of me thinks this is a bad movie.
But also...
No part of me can understand why people hail it as a masterpiece.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 3, 2024
Gaaaah! What’s the point!!!
Love hurts, we get it.
Love doesn’t always work out, we get it.
I didn’t need to sit through an utterly boring and uneventful hour to be told something I’ve seen a million times done in much more important and better ways.
Inconsistent themes, bland characters, and dialogue that is straight out of a bad soap opera.
At least it’s pretty…
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Shinkai has gotten much better at realizing how important characters are, with each new work he seems to prioritize them even more than the previous one. Takaki is a blank slate. Akari doesn't have enough screen time to matter. Unironically I think Sanae might be the only character I found myself caring about, just because she had motivations and emotions. Takaki shows nothing and it's not mysterious or accurate it's just a cheap way to write a story.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Dec 2, 2024
I normally wouldn't do a preliminary review, but I'm fairly confident my opinion on this won't change with the anime's conclusion.
I want so desperately not to have beef with this show. Its elaborate and unique animation makes watching it a complete joy. My main issue comes with the fanservice. Look, not all fanservice is terrible, with of-age characters in certain contexts I can't be all that butt hurt about it, but here it just feels excessive.
DanDaDan's fanservice isn't in a traditional sense, the animation isn't as sexualized as the plot itself... which is interesting. In the first episode, something happens that is borderline rape,
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and this is very quickly never mentioned again. If you are going that route and you want the aliens to be hypersexual at least have it be traumatizing and not played for laughs. So much of what happens could be horrifying if they framed it like that. The tone is what separates this from being a smart commentary on hypersexualization. Instead, this ends up as a horny show for horny teens.
It just feels like a waste of so many cool ideas. I can't hate this show, because it does a lot right, so I can't be too harsh on my rating at the end of the day, but it's hard to recommend earnestly.
Edit: After finishing this show I can firmly stand by this, rape is a terrifying thing and if you are going to have characters go through things that can be considered at least attempted rape please treat it with some kind of sincerity.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Oct 28, 2024
This is an interesting one for me.
Let me just say right out of the gate, in all ways technical this movie is a masterpiece. The animation is incredible the voice acting is strong and the music brings it all together....however...You have to note that this movie is basically for Fujimoto, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's similar to Boy and The Heron that way. We are not the audience. It's a form of expression, it's Tatsuki Fujimoto laid bare on the screen.
From a story standpoint, there isn't much to talk about, it's fun, but generic and held together by beats that are engineered
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to make you sad but hold little value otherwise. There is depth for sure, but with its short runtime, it felt more like I was watching a technical demonstration than a movie.
Okay...
I think this is the best way I can phrase this. If this movie was made by the studio Project No.9 (famously mediocre animation) then I think I would be much more harsh about it. That's not to say it's carried by animation, more accurately it's carried by passion. The passion in every aspect of this movie is so present, so in that regard, the end result is a gift more than it is a movie.
And I can't hate this gift. I don't even like Chainsaw Man all that much, so I don't have the Fujimotot bias, but the passion this movie radiates is infectious so I can't help but love it for that.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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