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Feb 6, 2023
Spoiler
***SPOILER WARNING FOR THIS FILM AND THE END OF EVANGELION***

The conclusion of the Rebuild of Evangelion film series gives us a much more positive ending than The End of Evangelion. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it is cathartic to see Shinji finally grow as a character and become a more heroic person who finally overcomes his weakness. But on the other hand, The End of Evangelion had a much bigger emotional impact for me personally. The brutal hopelessness and cynicism of that movie has not been matched in any of the subsequent reboot films. We went from a movie where ...
Dec 19, 2022
The End of Evangelion surpasses the original TV series in pretty much every regard. It's more violent, more emotionally intense, more visually interesting and has better pacing. My biggest problems with the series were Shinji and Asuka's characters, but in this movie their dynamic actually works in service of the story and character development. Shinji continues to be a pathetic wimp and Asuka's still the naggy spoiled princess, but now those annoying character traits finally pay off in a cathartic yet shocking twist. Anyone who has ever been in a psychologically abusive relationship will understand how frighteningly real the portrayal of extreme emotions gets in ...
Dec 16, 2022
Mixed Feelings
The Evangelion TV series is a product of its time in my opinion as a first-time viewer who finally watched this classic in 2022. While NGE's influence on the anime scene is undeniable it has many annoyances that might repel new viewers. I've been wanting to get into this franchise as it is a huge title that always comes up in anime-related conversations, but I was half-forcing myself to sit through all 26 episodes. It wasn't all bad, but I doubt I will revisit the TV series again, and I sincerely hope that the modern remake movies improve on the original.

My two biggest problems with ...
Jun 6, 2022
Belle is an excellent example of a style-over-substance film. What it lacks in its shoddy world-building and somewhat confusing character motivations it makes up for with visual spectacle and a truly beautiful soundtrack. So if you're looking for a great sci-fi story with an immersive and well-thought-out virtual world, you're not gonna find here. But if you're here mostly for the eye-candy and dramatic song numbers, you will find plenty to enjoy.

Much of Belle takes takes place in the virtual metaverse called U. While I can kind of get behind the idea that the characters can somehow transport their consciousness to the virtual world just ...
Mar 4, 2022
Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions! Take On Me is a roadtrip movie where Rikka and Yuta elope in order to avoid having Rikka taken to Italy by her sister Toka. The couple travel all over Japan engaging in familiar cutesy shenanigans while being pursued by Dekomori and Nibutani. This movie is 90 minutes long, but it feels more like an extended episode of the TV series than a theatrical release. The production value isn't noticeably higher, nor is there a grand epicness factor like with The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (which is another KyoAni movie sequel to a TV series). But is Take On Me ...
Mar 3, 2022
The second season of Love, Chuunibyo and Other Delusions picks up shortly after the events of the first season. Yuta and Rikka are now a couple and live together under the same roof. If you were hoping that this would lead to huge developments in their awkward relationship, you will probably be disappointed. Yuta and Rikka are as much of a shy odd couple as ever. Even small things like holding hands prove to be beyond their comfort level in the beginning. While other romance anime like Clannad saw the two main characters go from being a student couple to starting a family between seasons, ...
Feb 23, 2022
I'm choosing to write one review for all parts of Kizumonogatari instead of three separate reviews. This review is from the perspective of someone who read the original Kizumonogatari light novel before seeing these movies. Incidentally, Kizumonogatari was the first and so far only book to make me cry, so I have a particular fondness for this story.

Unlike the TV series, which is known for its colorful and surreal backgrounds, Kizumonogatari goes for a decidedly darker color palette with photorealistic backgrounds. The visuals for the most part look great, although there are a couple parts with CG that looks a bit awkward. What's really impressive ...
Feb 18, 2022
Overview:
Love, Chuunibuyou and Other Delusions is an anime heavily centered around the real-world phenomenon called Chuunibyo (which roughly translates to "middle school illness"). If you don't know what that means, it can be likened to a mixture of LARPers and cosplayers who take their hobby way too far. The main character, Yuuta Togashi, is an ex-chuunibyou who has since grown up and moved past the childish games. He meets Rikka Takanashi, a fangirl of his old persona who is a hardcore chuunibyou herself. Much of the humor revolves around Yuuta's first- and second-hand embarrassment from Rikka's chuunibyou antics as well as his own shameful past ...
Feb 15, 2022
Mixed Feelings
Zoku Owarimonogatari is the unnecessary yet enjoyable enough epilogue to the Monogatari series. The story concerns Koyomi entering a strange mirror world where all of his friends are 'reversed'. Or that's how it appears at first anyway, but there might be a little more to it. Personally I thought that the ending of Owarimonogatari Second Season was the perfect way to end the series, but Zoku kept my interest until the end either way. At the very least it did not go and ruin anything.

But like I said, this epilogue feels largely pointless. Many of the revelations that Koyomi has in the mirror world are ...
Feb 15, 2022
Mixed Feelings
Koyomimonogatari is what I consider to be the skippable filler-season of the Monogatari series. Unlike the more intricate televised seasons, this ONA season consists of much simpler 10-minute long short stories that take place at different parts in the series. While I do think that the more devoted fans will enjoy these cute little side stories and seeing more of their favorite characters, there are only a couple episodes that actually tie to the main overarching narrative. Many of the episodes feel rather pointless. As such, Koyomimonogatari is pretty underwhelming compared to the level of storytelling fans are used to. This entry is definitely for ...


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