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May 7, 2022
I feel like there are 2 camps when it comes to modern Shounen anime.
You either love it with all you heart and think it’s the best shounen anime or anime ever made.
(Or)
You hate it with all your heart and think that it has nothing going for it but the animation (sakuga)
I say that Demon Slayer has a lot of potential because of its interesting setting. The story is set in a vast world with a lot of potential to become a great story but, unfortunately for Demon Slayer, the story being told is only as good as the characters through which the audience is experiencing
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this story and world through.
Demon Slayer has some of, if not the most annoying characters in modern Shounen anime to the point where it’s unbearable to watch at some points. This was my main complain for season one especially with Tanjiro being too much of a Mary Sue, Nezuko being the Moe character and Zenitsu and Inosuke being too obnoxious and annoying. Don’t even get me started on Tengen’s wives, especially Hinatsuru.
Alright, you don’t have good heroes, ever heard of the saying “A hero is only as good as his villain”, we’ll it’s true and that drags this series even lower because of how shallow the villain characters are and they expect us to feel for them and gear up when they’re having their flashbacks before they die?
I feel like this series and MHA going head to head to be best shounen anime or best anime says it all about the current state of shounen anime. They’re both mediocre shows and have a lot of flaws and annoying characters.
The opening theme song and the animation I are the only things I liked about this season of Demon Slayer.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 12, 2020
I came across Pom Poko while scrolling the anime section on Netflix. I was born in 1994, the year this movie came out and yet even with it being a Studio Ghibli movie, I've never heard of it, so I decided to watch it and was surprised that this was never recommended.
This is yet another Studio Ghibli masterpiece. The movie has everything from a great plot, music, art and loveable characters. This is a standard Ghibli movie that leaves you loving and respecting nature more and the movie sports just the right amount of testicles to be funny, one more testicle would've been too much,
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they killed it on that one.
The movie takes place in Tokyo as it rapidly develops and has to destroy neighboring forests to make room to build accommodation for the rise in population. The story follows a gaze of tanuki (Racoons) residing in the forest and co-existing with humans. One day the tanuki are taken completely by surprise when the humans are tearing down their home so they can expand their own. The movie showcases when you try your best and it still doesn't work, you have to learn to let go of some and adapt to the situation you are presented with.
This uses the Japanese urban legend of how tanuki are believed to possess the magical power to transform. They use it to their advantage to try and save their homes by transforming into humans and trying to sabotage the Tokyo expansion project. I'm not going to explain more as this is a review and not a summary of the movie.
As a 26-year-old who doesn't get hyped for anything much, the 'Spirited Season' Pom Poko OST which first plays when the tanuki are at war with each other, made me feel warm, cheery and put a smile on my face every time it played.
Final verdict, these trash pandas stole my trashy heart.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jun 12, 2020
Modest Heroes is a 53-minute long movie composed of 3 short films from Studio Ponoc, these shorts are more about Studio Ponoc showing their potential and aptitude for great animation while still providing small stories with passable story arcs.
Kanini & Kanino:
The character design and their setup were very intriguing. There is no dialogue and the characters are only able to say each other's names. I'm a fan of silent films and think that when used properly, they can be more powerful than dialogue, coupled with a world that piques your interest only to fall flat, makes for a bad combo. -SPOILER- I really thought the
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mother character 'Kaka' died from one of those big fish, which reminded me of Finding Nemo but, it seems that she just went to give birth. Which then begs the question, why would you let a pregnant lady go alone in waters filled with threat? This is the weakest of the 3 short films in regards to the story.
The animation was good, the CGI water and backgrounds were great except in some frames where the blending between traditional and 3D was noticeable. I wasn't a big fan of the CGI fishies. Even with great animation, This comes in last compared to the other 2 shorts.
Life Ain't Gonna Lose:
Is a more grounded story about a boy suffering from an allergy to eggs and a mother dealing with the anxiety of her son's safety and the world's ignorance and dismissal of her son's allergy. The boy eats an ice cream only to feel weird and find out that eggs are one of the ingredients, going to a festival and accidentally getting something on you that has eggs and almost dying. The mother's valid reason for over protecting the boy and the boy feeling weak as a result. The mother feeling that her son can't be by himself and she has to risk her dream career to take care of him leads to a great story.
The dynamic cinematography and animation in scenes where the mother is peddling on a bicycle with her son on her back, the boy running down the stairs with his epi-pen, the mother and her dance team practicing their moves. This short had the second-best animation in my opinion.
Invisible:
The title says it all. It is a story about someone who feels invisible, literally and figuratively. Someone who feels that no one notices them, their actions carry no weight and are unnoticeable and insignificant. Someone who needs the aid of something else to give them weight, balance and footing. Growing up I was an invisible person for most of my life and I related to this one the most. There is nothing else to say than to watch this one and feel for yourself.
The premise with an Invisible man provides great animation opportunity, which studio Ponoc used to the max and then some. The character design, backgrounds, cinematography, coloring, music and rain were spectacular. The scene where the invisible man flys off his moped and the camera goes from in front to behind him through his clothing was revisited by me multiple time. The best animated short of the 3.
Final verdict, This is a must-watch if you enjoy great animation and are open to good short stories.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jun 12, 2020
When I first came across Kengan Ashura on Netflix, I saw the trailer and wasn't interested in watching it due to the CGI. After watching Baki on Netflix which I hated (you can find my review on MAL). I didn't feel like wasting more time on a senseless and violent action anime. It was later recommended by an anime YouTuber that I feel has good recommendations and I have mutual interests with, so I decided to give it a shot.
The CGI was a bit of a downfall but not as low as I thought it would be. The CGI rigs seemed to help the animators
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with the action sequences. The white powder puff of smoke with each hit seemed and the exaggerated reaction of the fighters for attacks was cheesy in 3D. Would I rather prefer it to be in traditional anime style? Absolutely, the reaction shots of the side characters during the fights are traditional animation and they look really good. The show does possess the aptitude to do great animation, as they showcase in the flashback and exposition scenes of characters that have different animation styles and are done very well. I just feel that in regards to action anime, traditional animation just feels right and the impact of every attack is almost tangible.
The show is based on a practice held for hundreds of years known as the Kengan Tournament, where big corporation find a fighter to champion their company and go up against others champions, where they battle over business disputes or for exclusive rights to do business in certain areas, wager their entire company, net worth, etc, on top of which the representative of the companies can have personal wagers against each other like stocks and so on.
The story then leads to senseless and brutal violence but, the simple premise coupled with likable characters in Kazuo Yamashita, Lihito, etc is able to hold the series together and make it watchable. Kengan Ashura does overuse a lot of action anime tropes and not the good ones, like the crazy guys who fight to kill because they just do, the crazy fighter chicks who are interested in mating with the main character. It manages to still be funny and the characters are memorable, although that might be due to Ohma calling everyone by their full name.
The show alludes to the main characters having some character development in-store. They are interesting enough to get invested in.
Final verdict, Kengan Ashura is just a big dump of action anime tropes made with bearable CGI but, has enough energy and heart to not only be watched but enjoyed.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 12, 2020
Are you into senseless, brutal violence and nothing else? Then this is the show for you. This was my first exposure to Baki and I have to say that this is very disappointing and felt like a waste of time. I just pulled through the show to finish it and to give it a shot after it was hyped so much. This is not even a good action anime there are way better shows out there you can invest your time on.
The anime is very inconsistent. There are 5 criminals who are dangerously strong and are held at high-security specialized prisons (the prisons are specialized
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to hold them) they all break out and come to Tokyo to find Baki Hanma and defeat him. A couple of episodes in one of the criminals finds Baki and completely annihilates him. Later, about midway into the series, Baki is able to defeat not only him but another one of the 5 criminals. While this is a common trope in action anime, there is nothing that shows how Baki got stronger.
Don't even get me started on that weird love story that came out of nowhere and Baki only seems to care about sex. There is nothing likable about Baki as a lead character that the show is named after and none of the characters is likable or memorable.
The art in the show is another downfall, although it is consistent the animation itself is weird and doesn't flow well. I'm a strong believer that action anime use the platform to its maximum potential, with great angles and dynamic camera work and character expressions of which none are seen here, there are a couple of close-ups and so on but, it's more childish than impressive.
This is one of those shows that people who don't watch action anime watch and use as an example to generalize and complain about all action anime, which I don't blame them for but, triggers me.
Kengan Ashura is a better show compared to this and it is just as senseless and violent. It is also CGI which I was skeptical about. While it has a lot of its own downfalls and is not a great show in any regard. It has a simple premise that holds the series together and gives it structure, whereas Baki is just all over the place and doesn't know what it's doing due to the lack of any structure or a clear story.
Final verdict, looks buff and strong but, Baki throws a weak punch, just dodge it. You're better off watching any other anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Jun 9, 2020
Corpse Party: Missing Footage.
This is now my lowest-rated anime on MAL. Hopefully, something else doesn't go lower.
I made the mistake of watching this before the 4 episode OVA sequel as this was stated as the prequel and I thought that I would get more connected to the characters if I watched it in chronological order.
The story begins with the girls lying down blindfolded and getting murdered while they scream and their blood spurts on the walls and ceiling, followed by an innocent smile of the killer. In my opinion, this wasn't a good idea, they should've saved this for the 4 episode OVA used their
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already small 11-minute window to showcase the characters more to get give the audience a chance of getting connected with the characters.
Having said that, what does the special do in the rest of the 11-minutes you ask. Well, they were going to make us attach to the characters of course. Starting off with a boy in the bathtub whose sister runs in naked to join the bath and wash him. If this isn't your most favorite anime character of all time the, I don't know who is because no one else is more worthy.
We then jump to the next scene with a girl groping another girl while talking about a boy the groper thinks the gropee has a thing for. Who is this hunk she is head over heels for? Well, of course, it is the young boy who was getting washed in the bath by his younger sister. After the fan service is done.
We cut, to the next scene where a boy and a girl are talking on the phone about a festival and how it is the girl's last day in that school. There was nothing interesting about this scene, especially when you compare it to the scenes that came before.
We cut again to another couple who have a boring talk and then the girl prints out the ritual doll that they rip at their school in the sequel.
Never in my life did I ever think I would feel bad for wasting 11 minutes. Watch something else, you're welcome.
Final verdict, this footage should've stayed missing.
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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Jun 9, 2020
Corpse Party: Tortured Souls.
Is it scary to watch? No, It isn't scary at all.
As soon as I started watching and some time passed by, I became quite bored. Then they do the ritual and the pace picks up. I was intrigued at first by the setup and was eagerly watching. My problem is not that it isn't scary, you can always get cheap scares by using jump scares, my problem with the show was that there was no suspense, there is no build-up, nothing that creates anticipation for a reveal, it fell completely flat.
Sound is a very important aspect of any visual medium, especially in
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the horror genre where you could use the power of silence, good sound effects, and music to create anticipation.
For a show that has a very interesting setup, the characters are too forgettable and annoying at times to watch, which made the entire experience worse. They do not make rational decisions and yes I understand this could be a reflection of their frightened mind at the time and their young age but, they seem pretty calm while talking to a ghost, even after it reveals itself as a ghost. One of them goes insane out of nowhere, his transition or his motives weren't shown.
The show has gore, guts and mindless killing but, that isn't scary, it quickly became a bit of a drag and quite predictable except for the ending of the series which I wasn't expecting. I was so bored by then and thought that it was going to transport the rest of the characters back and their friends are all going to be waiting for them on the other side. It caught me off guard. The ending and the post-credit scene brought back more interest in the show than I had throughout watching the show.
I had a theory and quickly turned to the internet to look for "Ending Explained" videos and blogs to get closure and read a couple of theories which corroborated with mine.
Final verdict, the only soul that was tortured was mine.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Jun 8, 2020
I'll just start by saying that they better make a second season because I need closure with everything that went down in the last episode.
I was reminiscing about Prince of Tennis which I watched as a kid when I looked it up on MAL, I found out that there were too many episodes and wanted to watch a tennis based sports anime but, shorter. I came across Stars Align and upon viewing knew that this wasn't a normal sports anime.
I like the setting, characters, how the boys team isn't good and so they get hand-me-down gear that the more successful girls soft tennis team has
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used. The art in the show is very consistent.
Stars Align is trying to address deeper social issue and there is nothing wrong with that but, every character in the anime seems to have something or the other going on for them. I understand that life isn't perfect, I know that from first-hand experience just like most everyone else. We all have our struggles but, the way the show portrays it is just that every character has a different social or identity issue with themselves or that is forced upon them by their family. It's not that I don't like it, growing up in India I have seen what tiger or helicopter parenting does to someone but, it took a long time for a friend of mine to come out of that situation and for us as friends to gain his trust so he could share his struggles and burdens with us. When you want to cater or address that many social issues with all the side characters, you have to pace it in a way that conveys their struggle. Some of their troubles were believable and some just weren't, I would say that the problem isn't that the writing is poor and is unable to convince us rather that the writers were given too short of a time to deliver all these emotions to the audience and failed at some, rightfully so.
While it addresses all these social issues and tries to be grounded it also does the exact opposite in the sport aspect of the anime as the main character Maki who hasn't played a sport in his entire life, who upon his introduction is shown to have good stamina because he prefers to use the stairs instead of elevators (which is a good and healthy habit that I employ occasionally) but, does that mean I can pick up a tennis racket and be a genius at it, NO. Even if I were to suspend that disbelief with it being an anime and all, where does Maki learn tennis and doubles team strategy? He just started the sport, they could've at least given the strategy and picking the doubles team to Toma, because he has spent time on the court and played with the other members for a longer time than Maki but, Maki just had to do everything. I picked up Badminton after a decade of playing it as a hobby myself and I've been able to improve my skills on the court better (playing every weekend) but, my strategy is pretty much crap and my doubles partner keeps me in check with what to do so we don't clash on the court. Ok, so maybe Maki isn't as stupid as I am but that still doesn't land well when the anime wants to portray such grounded realism with the problems all the characters are facing in their everyday life but, becomes a full-on sports anime on the court. I would say that all out sports anime do a better job even though they are very cliche and cheesy but they at least show the characters spending most of their time in the court and just not becoming a genius after touching the ball, racket, bat, etc.
Having said all this and realizing that this is now my longest review on MAL for an anime, Stars Align is worth watching. It has its ups and downs. Most people either love the anime or absolutely hate it, in what I've seen of the reviews. I happen to be one of the few in-betweeners.
I was also told that the anime was originally slated to be 24 episodes then got cut by the studio to 12. This explains the abrupt ending of the series, even though this is still a good setup to have people anticipate for a second season, hoping that it does happen. It sucks that it is an anime original and isn't based on a novel or manga. The endings of this anime would've actually made me pick up the manga to check it out.
Give it a watch and decide for yourself.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jun 8, 2020
The episodes are either specials, side stories, prequels or sequels tieing in with the main story. If you enjoyed Girls und Panzer main series, you will enjoy this OVA. They are smaller episodes while still retaining the fun and enjoyability, as the characters shine.
Ep 1. The girls from Sensho-do spend the entire episode trying to find swimsuits to go to the beach. It is a typical cute episode with its own original ideas for swimsuits based on tanks. The ending had me laughing.
Ep 2. The girls decide to camp nearby and the fan service continues as they decide to be in their swimsuits from episode
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1. It is a fun watch.
Ep 3. The most interesting episode, as it explains how school ships came about and why grade school is the only one that still remains on land, a good history lesson on the world and some more good fun.
Ep 4. What I presume is the complete version of the Anglerfish (Goosefish) dance, that Ooarai Academy performs after they lose.
Ep 5. A side story that happens during the Ooarai Vs Pravda from the main series. This episode focuses on the scouting expedition carried out by Yukari and Riko. Of course, following Yukari you know there is going to be a lot of new stuff explained and a lot of fun. I liked that we also got some extra screentime with Riko.
Ep 6. The Sensho-do club celebrates their championship win and the characters shine even more during the talent contest.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jun 7, 2020
Unlike other anime series that have pointless OVAs or Specials, this one connects to the main series and shows the match between Ooarai Academy and Anzio that was skipped over in the main series after Ooarai's victory with Saunders.
Yukari is at it again with her spy work and introduces us to Italian tanks that the opponents are going to use in the upcoming match, the match itself is great, the humor of Girls und Panzer is present and funny. It is a bit longer than a typical episode but is definitely worth the watch if you watched and liked the main series anime.
If you want
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to watch the entire series in chronological order, then you should watch this episode between episodes 7 and 8 of the main series.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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