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I was hyped for Char's Counterattack after being disappointed with ZZ, but sadly, it fell flat. Now there is some good stuff about this flick, the animation is bloody superb, leading to some great Gundam fights in the process, especially towards the end. The use of CGI in terms of the colonies in a few scenes really haven't aged well, they just look distracting. The music is fantastic, one of my favourite soundtracks in anything Gundam so far, with Beyond the Time being a favourite ED.

It's just that everything else in this movie absolutely sucks. What did they do to Char? Why the 180? ... They try to explain it but it's as if Tomino forgot Zeta Gundam was a thing for most of it and Char isn't as likeable or as understandable as he was in the previous series, he's basically Scirocco from Zeta, manipulating the battlefield and some of the characters as well, it really doesn't fit him. Amuro at least was done right but he's the good guy so him changing character in a drastic manner would be weird too. In terms of other characters, Quess Paraya is annoying, useless and is another Elpeo Ple but I tolerate Quess because it's a movie, I didn't have to spend an entire series with her. Hathaway was OK, didn't do much until the end and then he does something really stupid and my likeability towards him heavily dropped. Other than Captain Bright, who I'm always happy to see, as well as his pimp hand, every other character is forgettable, even with some characters that you were supposed to care are just 'meh'. But other than Mirai, where are the original characters from 0079?

I find the plot to be a mess overall, Char's reasoning for wanting to screw over Earth was ridiculous and out of character, which almost ruins the rivalry between Amuro and Char since the brilliant grey morals of both in the original has become one-sided. Char's Counterattack could have been so much better but it ends up being yet another disappointing tale. Whilst the final battle between Amuro and Char ends up being satisfying in the end, how we got to it with this film is quite disappointing. If you do check it out, do so for the gorgeous animation and music.

I'm one of those people who dislike ZZ Gundam. Whilst I understand the reason why the series went for a more light-hearted tone, it's the way it was written, it could have worked but it does not. Other than the main character, who has more charisma and likeability than Kamille, all the new characters are either OK or are so unlikeable that you don't care about them. The majority of the series just didn't click with me and the only thing going for it was the Gundam fights, which are good but not great when compared to Zeta's fights. A massive highlight goes to Haman ... Karn, for as weak as the series is, she's a great villain, and pretty scary in a lot of ways.

In terms of characters I didn't like, Mashymre Cello's a SIMP, Glemy Toto's a SIMP but admittedly gets better, Chara Soon is annoying but later events with her is super bleak, Shinta and Qum from Zeta are surprisingly likeable in this series, seeing the stuff they've seen in Zeta probably made them more mature and don't make me want to hit my head on the wall.

For those who say that the series gets better, yeah, it gets a little better when the series is almost over. A certain event in Dublin reeks of desperation to show that it's going to be darker now but it far too little too late. The ZZ Gundam Mobile Suit is not my favourite main Gundam in the series, it looks like it was made to be a toy right from the get go, it reminds me of the Megazord from Power Rangers. ZZ Gundam has some good moments, I won't lie, but I don't like the tonal shift and I don't think it was done well, it could have slowly shifted into that tone instead of the whiplash that ruined any chance of me enjoying it through to the end. But if you like it, then all the more power to you. As for me, I probably like my Gundam series where war is personal and messed up but with some humanity woven well.

So take everything that made the previous series unique and throw it out of the window as the series gets dark, and the bad guys are jerks. The themes of war, survival and death return but the grey morals are gone and we know who the good guys are, in fact, said themes are even bleaker. In terms of the main protagonist, the somehow autistic Kamille Bidan, he took a while to warm up to me. All I saw was an angsty teenager who got beaten up once in a while, because they think beating the mental disability out of him is the only cure. ... As he fights in the war, he matures and even ends up getting girls being magnetised to him, but it doesn't end well.

The other characters in terms of people in the AEUG and Armada, are still for the most part likeable, not as memorable as 0079, but still written well. Apart from Katz, who had potential to grow as a great fighter like Kamille but sadly doesn't. And then there's Reccoa Londe, her character development is borderline ridiculous, because she couldn't get into Char's pants...oh, I mean, Quattro Bajeena's pants, she defected to the enemy's side to get Scirocco's pants, and it didn't make any sense. Anyway, Kamille has a rival, Jerid. No, he's not Char, and yes, he's a failure at being a proper rival to Kamille.

The animation has improved tremendously this time round, meaning the Mobile Suit fights are much better and intense, you never know who's going to get golden crispy in space. The Mobile Suit designs this time round are insane, they're much more diverse, mostly from the Titans' suits and most are fully realised, they can change into different shapes and sizes for more strategic elements. Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam is probably my second favourite series so far, it's a damn bleak series where you don't know if most of the heroes are going to make it because the Titans are bloody ruthless. Zeta fully realises the horrors of war and is never shy of making it known at times. And in the end, you feel empty inside. Check it out!

So what do you get when you have an anime about a Sumo who declares that he's going to break that he will break Showa Futabayama's record of 69 consecutive wins, and if he ever lost, no matter how sly the means, he would retire then and there? You get an anime with low tension where the main character never grows or progresses, the same Harima from the first episode remains the same in the final episode. So much controversy in the association because the main protagonist, Harima, can't for the life of him take one match off from wearing a mask, even I was ... getting annoyed along with the hecklers in the anime.

So Aah! Harimanada has a simple plot that one can follow easily, though this is because it's absolutely repetitive and too bland for a series like this. There's a good number of wrestlers and most get backstories, you get to see their personalities shine if only for a little bit. They have the same goals (albeit, they all have the same goal) and the risks they'll take to put down the masked annoyance. Is it sad to say that I rooted for Harima's opponents to win since they respect the traditions of Sumo far highly than Harima, but because of the series' premise, it leads to disappointment before matches begin.

I do like the character designs, mostly the Sumo wrestlers, I love the thick stroke they have in matches, giving the wrestlers a lot of weight to them. Shame about the animation though because you can tell the studio didn't have the budget to make more dynamic fights: Repeated frames, lack of movement, moments going on for longer than they should, you name it. At the very least, I may have gained some very basic knowledge of Sumo wrestling and that lifestyle too, so that's cool. And some fights were at least decent even though you know the outcome.

Aah! Harimanada is quite average but had potential to be so much better. Every character are decent, the sumo wrestlers were very interesting characters apart from Harima, who is a douchebag, I think he's meant to be a heel wrestler, but the anime's pacing is sloppy and the story progression is rather flat. If you want a Sumo anime where you just care about the fights, I'd say watch a few episodes, and if you somehow get hooked into the series, then I'm happy for you, but if you get bored with it after episode 3-4, don't worry, you ain't missing much.

What a classic. It's a simple tale of an army trying to take down a dictatorship using giant robots as vehicles of destruction, sure, but it ends up being far more compelling than most people would think, even by the standards of 1979. The themes of war, survival, death and gray morals is kind of refreshing to me. Amuro Ray is such a great protagonist, a boy who got swept away in this war and is constantly challenged mentally and physically, thankfully, Captain Bright's pimp hand can make a man out of anyone and Amuro goes through more trials and tribulations to win the war ... he never wanted to be a part of. Everyone does their part to save the Earth in the White Base, and every character is memorable and likeable, apart from those kids, I hate them...until much later in the series where they did something actually heroic. The newtype plot point later in the series took me by surprise and not in a good way and it really shouldn't have worked but it was done quite well and we get some psychedelic moments as a result.

You know the world is immersive when you care for the bad guys, and I mean the soldiers, they're never written as horrifically or stereotypically evil, they're just the opposition given tasks to do to get a leg up in the war, they're just written as human characters and that was unique back then and now, something you would never see in western media. The higher-ups of Zeon are also interesting characters, apart from M'Quve, what kind of name is M'Quve? And how can I not talk about Gundam without even mentioning Char, the absolute bastard and I love him, the rival to Amuro, and he's come to laugh at you.

The Mobile Suits may be considered basic by today's standards, but I like the simple designs of these suits, my favourite is of course, the RX-78-2 Gundam, it's such an iconic suit and from what I've seen over the franchise, is the template for many future Gundam Mobile Suits, that's great. The fights are...well it's from the 70's so it ain't going to be up to the standards of future series, but at least it doesn't feel repetitive as previous giant robot anime, I'll tell you that. Mobile Suit Gundam is a timeless classic, it might be considered dated by some in terms of animation, even though I do find it charming regardless, but the story, characters and themes make up for it nevertheless. I would recommend watching the three Mobile Suit Gundam movies if you don't want to watch 43 episodes of this series.

It's been a while since I watched the first season of One Punch Man and I loved every minute of it. Good story, good animation, some solid pacing, the works. That being said, once I heard of the negativity towards the second season trailer, it worried me, and when I watched the first episode when it was new...I dropped it immediately, and I didn't know why and just forgot about it.

I have since gone back to watch the entire season and while it has it's moments, it's a blooming disappointment. The animation was subpar, it wasn't as fluid and fantastical as the first season, you ... can tell many corners were cut and all the cool stuff that Madhouse could have made work has been completely squandered (and yes, I know the animation studio changed as well as the highly talented staff).

I could forgive that if not for the horrible pacing. I assumed that 12 episodes meant adapting an arc smoothly without the nonsense but this felt like it dragged on and on, and by the end, it never felt like it properly concluded, almost as if it's spreading itself thin but not even finishing spreading. And I felt the story suffered for it as a result, the comedy is more of a mixed bag, most of the characters whilst decent, aren't as interesting anymore. Heck, Saitama almost suffered the most, I kind of forgot he was in this anime from time to time, that's the issue with this awful pacing in this season.

Upon further research, the arc in the manga was never finished, so nobody waited until it was all over to adapt it properly. It's basically a rushed product. We could have waited a bit longer, most of us had patience, but money talks and so we got...this.

Any positives? Garo is looking to be an interesting character, I kind of liked his backstory and why he is the way he is. He's an interesting villain and a completely different kettle of fish compared to everyone else. The heart of the series (e.g. what it means to be a hero and all that) is still there, but that's spread thin too.

The second season of One Punch Man needed more time, talent, probably money and most of all, it needed some bloody patience. I find this OK for the most part, I tried to get pumped when action scenes were happening but it just wasn't the same as Season One and I wasn't engaged with the story as Season One due to said poor pacing. If a third season were to ever happen, I hope it does the manga justice, otherwise, I may just stick with the manga instead.