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I am conflicted on how I feel about Orb. As someone who paid attention in history class, I have a broad understanding of the history that is covered in Orb and it feels a bit like a cheap version with glorified torture and brutality as a means for cheap entertainment. The biggest sin of the series is the over use of shock with killing characters off. In the beginning it was fine, but in Draka's arc it started to feel unnecessary and anticlimactic having character's potential squashed for the same narrative progression.

At the beginning you don't really know where the main focus of the ... story lies, whether it's emphasis on the Church and how they handled with the distribution of knowledge that goes against their holy scriptures, or rather the story of the characters we meet along the way. In the end it's neither, but rather the dilemma of ideology versus the pursuit of knowledge. What are you willing to sacrifice for the pursuit of knowledge? How far does one's conviction go for the sake of their crusade and whether or not there are variables outside the realm of their normal bubble in which can completely shatter it all in a blink of an eye?

Initially Rafal is the one being persecuted and attacked over his pursuit of knowledge, being his challenge of the current model of the universe, Geocentrism. It's poetic in a way, having him survive and being the thing we thought as evil this entire time, the persecution of scholars over their ideologies. It shows that it's quite difficult to quantify true evil in others' pursuit of righteousness. Is Nowak truly evil for wanting to spread the love of the Lord and to eradicate any of those who opposed his will, or rather it's more complicated than that? Did he just want to maintain the way of life and the blessings graced by his religion? This was a universal concept that could be applied to anyone in the series, even Antoni who was the most sociopathic person in the entire show. Did his view on the importance of monetary growth as crucial for the progression of humanity, stem from a place of evil?

Back to the point on unnecessary brutality of this show, the systematic approach on torture of a child, even as a cartoon is something I don't agree with being shown and was kind of shocked they even animated it. Yes the scene was cut short and Jolenta was saved, but it was quite disturbing to watch. There was also what I thought be a wasted potential of having Jolenta and Nowak realizing who each other were when she got blown up. They didn't need the closure of a final meeting, as brief as it was because so many years has passed and they've already come to terms with their situation. All that was left is the conviction they had for their crusade and having them pursue it to their full extent without anything holding them back. Them seeing and realizing who each other were in the last moment was unnecessarily cruel as they've already given up on a reality where they'd see each other again, considering how conflicted they would feel considering the reason they were separated and the path they took during their time apart.

Draka death was also something that was unnecessary, she was a Woman and a Nomad in the era of oppression of cultures and genders. The hurdle of overcoming the systemic oppression she would face was greater than challenging the Church's gospel. The best she could manage was to send the letter and hopefully watch history unfold. Her chances of survival was already slim without being stabbed to death, let alone the influence she can even have on history. Unnecessarily killed off one of the best character to satisfy the same thoughtless progression that has been beaten to death already, like the character in this show. We get it, passing of the torch, a small ripple created from a seemingly insignificant variable can usher in the movement of progression and the movement of knowledge. Now stop killing everyone...

Oczy and Badeni arc was the peak of this story, afterwards it started to go downhill pretty quick.

This is my review after reading through 1/3 of the series so far, it's a long series so it'll take some time before I finish it so my opinion can still change but so far it's been amazing.

LOTM is a very unique series, nothing quite like it. The world building, lore and power system is absolutely insane but can also work against it at times because you're going to forget a lot of detail and you're just going to have to get use to just only vaguely understanding lore drops. There are great characters, but LOTM doesn't focus too heavily on character development but rather ... the mysteries of this world and when you get some emotional scenes you are thrown for loop because you're so use to being enthralled with the plot progression that you forget that the MC interacts with a bunch of people who are just trying to make it in the treacherous world they live in where there's constant dangers, whether it's the corruption of society or the mysticism that they are powerless to.

The first volume has some criticism about it being slow but I thoroughly enjoyed it and think that it's a very believable in how it unfolded and the ending was necessary to progress with the story, even if the MC was unwillingly forced to move on from the solace of his usual routine. Then again his feelings over the matter isn't entirely in his control due to his circumstance.

If you love mystery with a gothic horror aesthetic and don't mind gore you'll love this. This is not a power fantasy where the MC is extremely op and cruises through everything, although he might just be damn near in that category because he can seem like the most composed and intelligent person ever at times, while just being an average everyday guy who just happen to get transmigrated.

You know that saying where your most memorable experience of anything is during the ending? Well Blue Lock is using this to the maximum potential. I don't care what people say about the change in style, I think it was necessary because the first season lacked the energy because the models were drawn way to simple compared to the insane sketches from the Manga panels. With the crispier models it was basically impossible to animate it properly all the way through (you needed a JJK S2 budget) but when they did, you got the master piece we got in the episode 14. They literally ... put all their eggs into one of the craziest and most hype scene in the entire Manga and honestly it paid off. Some how after all the sins 8-bit committed, they ended up winning back the majority of the fandom with a single animated sequence, kind of crazy.

My perception on this Season might be a bit skewed because I am a Manga reader so I've already experienced this arc at it's fullest potential and I am only looking forward to the "high quality" animated sequences of the best moments, and honestly they delivered what I was looking forward to this Season.

The best analogy for this series is a series of traffic accident on a highway, back to back in quick succession and you can't help but keep watching. Everything is so messy, and raw that you kind of forget that you can write people's relationships in this way and not the cookie cutter happy endings or trauma inducing, etc. I doubt this is the first series to do this concept, but it's so genius and I can't get enough of it. We have a pretty big cast with each having their own charm, and none of them feels like a throw away character, other than ... a few with lesser screen time.

After seeing the negativity surrounding this season, specifically the ending I wanted to revise my review. Originally I put mixed because I had some very conflicted feelings about the changes they made with how it was presented. But I'll give my assessment on the whole season and for those who hated the season, maybe this can potentially sway your mind for at least that portion of the anime.

The overall school arc may be confusing to some as it's a pretty big shift in tone, but just think of Mushoku Tensei as a coming of age story with no set limitations on how the story can ... be told, it's just a biography in a way.

I'll differentiate the experience of the anime from the LN as they're too different entities, just because it's not really fair because of budget and time constraints. Let's just say the LN did a much better job for their journey to Lapan and the labyrinth exploration in terms of world building, adventuring, and battle tactic aspects, due to cut content. Certain character lost their time to shine which is unfortunate, but being an anime only you wouldn't know what you missed out on, so you'll probably survive.

Now Paul's death, being an anime only a few things might fly over your head, just because it moves quickly with weak exposition. The entire time leading up to this event, Rudeus still hasn't accepted the reality of being Rudeus Greyrat. Meaning he still believes this is just a "fake" life where he was just reincarnated and Paul and Zenith are his parents in title with no actual association with him as a person. Paul sacrificed himself for him, an "impostor" who never thought of him as his actual dad. Now that he understands the joy in starting a family and with a child on the way, he can truly empathize with the regret that Paul must feel, not being able to be there for his family. Which prompts him to reminisce about his parents in his previous life while dealing with his grief. He was given a second chance at life and he commits the same mistake, and this is something he can't take back anymore because Paul is already dead and Zenith is out of commission. It's a compounding effect which lead him to the worst state he's ever been. After he was cured of his ailment (I'll discuss in this in a separate paragraph), he goes to Paul's grave and corrects himself by calling him dad instead of Paul and you can go back and check, he has never once called him dad in his internal dialogue. So calling him dad with no one else around was a big deal and for the first time ever he meant it. From now on he'll do his best to fill his role in the family, to leave as little regret for Paul moving forward as possible.

Now to address the elephant in the room, the integration of Roxy. I personally believe that it was best to have Paul's death and the addition of Roxy further spaced out. Perhaps the author got a little too excited because he was writing his best works in the story as of yet and pulled the trigger too early. Even if Rudeus was unable to recover, I needed more than just time skip exposition to convey that it's been a long time for them to drop this bombshell. In the ideal situation (I thought about this a lot), they come to the conclusion that they need to take Rudeus to Sylphy to save his life, they leave and some sort of rare phenomenon (whether it's monsters or natural disasters) endangers their survival, with Rudeus out of it, Paul gone and the addition of safeguarding Zenith, they're getting desperate. They bunker down and discuss what to do, and then the idea of Roxy curing Rudeus comes to mind, so it feels less like everyone is conspiring behind Sylphy's back and Roxy is more naturally integrated into the fold. Maybe the discussion of marriage happens after they get back to Sharia and Elinalise brings the idea to Rudeus due to the state Roxy was in and how she did it to save the group and she ended up getting more hurt in the process, just so that everything isn't decided with Slyphy completely absent. I'd be much happier with that than the sinful display we got in the anime and even the LN, which I was also not too big of a fan of but at least it didn't portray Roxy in such a negative light.

This season of Mushoku Tensei is arguably the most important arc in the entire series. We have Rudeus coming to terms with his previous life and current life, with everything comes back full circle and he can finally move on from all the hardships he had and grow as an individual without all that weight holding him down. From him empathizing with his siblings who tried to save him from his situation in his past life with the Norn stuff, and appreciating his parents due to what happen in Lapan. Although he can never be one of my favorite characters just due to some irredeemable things he's done as a person in his previous life, I can appreciate good writing when I see it.

As an anime stand alone experience ontop of being able to grasp all the nuances, it's a masterpiece. But I am sorry episode 11 was too criminal, so I'll just settle with a 9... Even though I wanted to give it lower due to being a LN reader, I'll just give benefit of the doubt that it doesn't really change the major plot points, but it was punch to the gut for sure.

Girls Band Cry is the perfect package to push 3d animation to the masses in a digestible way.

We have a beautiful blend of 2d and 3d animation and a perfect medium to showcase it, band orientated choreography which is a nightmare for hand drawn animation. An anime original with a dedicated production value with zero drop in quality throughout the entire season.

A very honest interpretation of the risk indie bands/musicians take when they dedicate themselves to their craft with no safety-net, along with the potential drama and internal struggles one might face when pursuing said path. The MC is the personification of this in it's ... purist form, who sticks to their morals and doesn't waver. When everyone else in the field faces the hardship of reality, and are "forced" to settle, she refuses. That inner childish dreamer that everyone once was when they pursued this career and those around her just can't help but root for her, even her competitors because deep down they want to see them succeed as well, which sometimes can come off as a bit annoying but it doesn't in this example due to the honest writing of her supporting cast members.

All in all an amazing anime original, with amazing moments and stunning visuals.

I can't believe I dropped this series back when it aired due to the influx of romance genre being pumped out and being baited by generic or just not for me series.

I might've given it two episodes originally and just gave up, because the first episode is such a poor representation of this show. This really is a hidden gem in the romcom genre in anime. I always thought romcoms in anime had to have characters that goes above and beyond, to be that unachievable best boy/girl status to rise to these heights because I didn't believe anime could actually do romance this well. Yamada ... and Ichikawa probably isn't going to be winning many best girl or boy votes unless the competition is relatively weak that season, but their romantic development and tension is just immaculate, so much so that they would probably clear almost anyone for the category of best "couple".

This movie probably had the best use of a plot device for a Romance genre with inexplicable supernatural elements.

No real big issues with the movie other than it was a little rushed and I was not the biggest fan of the male lead voice actor but these are not the fault of the original material. It's a shame that I watched the movie first because I have a feeling I would had thoroughly enjoyed the original. The movie felt like a sparknotes version of the entire story in a way, and given the foundation and overall plot, I can see the LN being a masterpiece.

Haven't ... read the LN yet, but if you're reading this, probably read the LN first.

Pluto is a story that really shows its age, is a statement that best describes this experience.

It's the equivalent of playing an old game in todays standards and you're just left thinking that we've just improved so much on the formula. It's a story with a pretty weak premise, weak setting, and weak characters. Flash backs are very poorly inserted that you often don't even realize you're in one until ten minutes later because you're constantly jumping around between characters who are robots with rockets for legs. There is a lot of nonsensical behavior due to over use of unwarranted empathy that goes beyond all ... logic, which is ironic because they're robots. I haven't read or watched Monster yet so maybe I haven't been sipping on the koolaid that bolstered this type of rating. I was just left very disappointed in the story and it just felt like the author was writing this with some sort of god complex (he'll save humanity and give robots empathy with this nonsense) in hopes that when AI does advance far enough they'll go learn about this and think, "wow this was a story that took no risks and was as bland as white bread."

Only saving grace is that the production value on this was crazy, so it wasn't terrible to look at, other than the first episode where they had some weird frame issues making it really difficult to watch because it hurts your eyes.

This is probably the most perfect series for cat owners to indulge in. It's such an amazingly happy and light hearted series and every episode you cannot help but smile the entire time. The characters are super fun, and the main is less one dimensional than you would think considering this is a comedy.

This is what GoHands is capable of when they tone down with their wild ideas, some of the best animation I've ever seen in a series of this type, maybe ever. It's refreshing to see an anime where every second was made for the purpose of the scene and we don't get ... many of those now a days, and what I mean by that is there are no close up frames that are super simple that purposely omits background and details to make it easier to animate, or inconsistent art. Every frame of the series, every single nanosecond is perfectly drawn and animated with care. They probably knew that it likely wasn't going to break any records or being immensely popular and still put their hearts and soul into this project and for that alone, this deserve immense praise. I'll be keeping an eye on GoHands from now on and see what they cook up next!

A very strong 8/10 and it's killing me to not put it up higher. Extremely underrated, and a must watch for cat owners.