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So, Asano is known for writing some pretty disturbing manga, most notable being “Good Night PunPun." I read a few chapters of his "Solanin," and I remember feeling bitter seeing hopes being broken so naturally and the characters coping up with it. (God, I hope I pick it back again.) DDDD seems to be his more lighthearted story of all, as in cute girls living through the end of the world.

The first few episodes are spent on world and character building. The grounded narrative offers for some realistic interactions, and the occasional callouts by Oran make fun of tropes and stereotypes, giving a reality check ... that despite the world literally ending, many people around us are still shit, and all of us are powerless in the face of a world waiting to end. And those that are in power are selfish, flawed, or worse, delusional.

Why this world? Why these characters?
One of the plot points in this show is infinity timelines, and there are potentially more emotional or thought-provoking stories that could’ve been told just by looking at some of these characters.
We have a government conspiracy between Japan and America, a genocidal maniac running in the wild, a solider shouldering the weight of green blood, a cult slowly brainwashing its followers, a journalist who only wants truth, an alien trapped in a human body, a big ass spaceship on top of Tokyo, and more tropes and characters that are waiting to spin their own tale, but Asano wanted us to see these two girls, Kadode and Oran.
Now why is that?

“As long as you are by my side”
Kadode is a normal girl. She has a father who’s too crooked in his work, a mother having an affair, her boyfriend ready to accept her, liked Isobeyan, and she wants to bang her teacher. Oran is an absurd girl. She is a gamer, has a protective keyboard warrior of a brother who only wishes good things for her, a normal father but no sign of mom, friends who accept her shenanigans, and some absurd past. It’s about these characters settling in a so-doomed world, accepting the not-so-great tragedies, enjoying the not-so-much remaining time, and spectating the oh-so-frightening end of the world. It is the feeling of belonging, something concrete to believe in such a fluid world, something absolute.

I cared more about their friendship than the end of the world. And Asano-san did his best, showing his optimism amidst a tragic world.

The animation and music are sufficiently well done—nothing exceptional, though. The voice acting is good; both new and pro VA’s gave their best. I had a good time going through an episode per week.

Conclusion
This is actually my first intro into Asano's works, and I guess I'm lucky that I wasn't traumatised lol. Anyway, give it a watch if you are interested in his work but too lazy or occupied to read a manga. And, don't worry about whether to watch episode 0 first or not. Thank You.

This is an anthology on folktales and the "Grimm" in the title is a wordplay referring to two things:
The story is going to be grim
The stories picked were collected by "Brothers Grimm", Jacob and Wilhelm, who are also the ones you see at the beginning of every episode.
The little girl with them, Charlotte, is probably the author's self-insert, since she's the one who reimagines what all the tales we see, supposedly.
Before I go much in detail, I want to preface that this anthology was more successful in making me search and know the original folktales than what it offered. I'm not familiar with the all ... the folktales (same as some of you) but a quick Google search should summarize the content.
Your knowledge and connection regarding the folktales will definitely decide your experience with this anthology.

Spoiler Alert
When the Damsel gives Distress
This version of Japanese "Cinderella" vilanizes the Mary sue and victimizes the ugly bitches (step sisters & step mom). And I think this is a bit distasteful. It does a good job at keeping the sisters in a conundrum; the sisters like wealth but do not like their stepsister, because she's manipulative and afraid what she might do; but they never try to escape and fight against her, they simply accept her manipulation. Even though Kiyoko vilanizes them in front of their own mother as bitches, they simply accept it. She corners them into believing they are bad people, even though they are not as bad as Kiyoko making them to be. This part is well done, even though I disliked it. But it did a piss-poor job at vilanizing Kiyoko. There's no depth or any reason for the torture, she simply thinks they are toys, she talks to a toy because the story wants you to believe she's some emo crazy manipulator. This episode was most hard to get through, but given the title, it's definitely a strong start.
The agony was set in stone, and all that's left is for you to decide. Do you want agonize with victims, or laugh with the villain?

When the Hunter becomes hunted
"Little Red Riding Hood" is by far the lowest this show ever got. It had a strong opening with introducing the "Wolf" but whatever sci-fi shit they wanted to cook feels incomplete to say the least. Yet it spends half an episode explaining it's own lore, to tell how they reimagined it, when all that was never utilized. As with the story, it's another "turning the table" situation (as you might have guessed with my title) that doesn't add anything, not even entertainment. It's pretentious, I'd even say the original folktale was more fucked up than what this show did.
Note:- "Little Red Riding Hood" had many interpretations but I believe you know what the most fucked is.

3 ladies and a kid
At this point, I had this idea that I can jumble between the episodes, since there's no rule to follow exactly as the episodes listed. And that really made me enjoy "The Town Musicians of Bremen" episode. While the setting is yet again, unoriginal, but the journey was good. So; a Dog, a Donkey, a Cat, & a Rooster walk into a bar and blows it into smithereens. That's all. It's straightforward, definitely the least grim out of all, but arguably the most fun I had. The character designs are appealing, the fights were half decent, and the conclusion was good.
Something better than death we can find anywhere.

A Short Neverland
"Hansel and Gretel" is a good mystery and a good story as well. You have a Promised Neverland-ish setup with kids dwindling in numbers unsuspectingly, two redhead siblings venturing out of their space, Isabella's twin sister, and a witch. It got a bit of suspense, a small adventure/mystery, with an out-of-the-blue but decent bitter-sweet ending.
The whole candy opening the doors is similar to the kids in folktale, where the kids use the pebbles to work their way back to their home, implying those candy were taking them home. Not a bad way to reference.

Art and Order prevails us all
"Pied Piper of Hamelin" is a bit unique episode, and works on a core idea of the original folktale, that art manipulates the immature. Probably the best and the only episode that has something to offer; in terms of story and visuals as well.
In a village devoid from the outside where any form of art is considered filthy, a teacher finds a photo to lure his student. But the student's imagination is far beyond than what they can comprehend.

Art makes people follow their free will, which disrupts order.

This episode mainly speaks how art and order controls humanity, even if they're a result of our ideas (We could debate on this). Grand code, the town's head grandma, who's really just a dictator fears that art makes people unpredictable. She also made it a rule that one can enter or leave the town. And that the most intelligent are those who can supress their emotions. Maria fits this bill, but there's a spark in Maria that everyone fears, the spark of adventure and to see what's outside. There's also something terrifying with how mature she can be for her age, which eventually brings despair to the teacher and freedom for Maria.
The animation, especially when Maria embraces the piper is Ghibli-esque. The backgrounds are top notch, the character design is a bit generic but distinct enough to fit the characters.
Probably the best episode.

A Writer don't want to write...
"Elves and Shoemaker" has planted an unease that I didn't had before.

I actually wrote a few short stories, and think a lot about what to write.
But I never write.
The most I did was to just write a dialogue or scene that I imaged, in my notepad, and rot it in my digital memory. I neither had any motivation to sit & write, or at least try to write for hours. Nor had I took any inspiration from anyone or anything. I write to sing in my little long words and dance with the sounds & taps & vibrations my phone makes as I print these letters.

But this guy is different. Mr. N is born and celebrated for his juvenile talent but his legacy ended before it began. He is seen lightly by his neighbors, editors, random uncles, and even the deity of literature. Yet he basks in his superior understanding and rejects the modern literature, just like he was rejected by the world.
Until one night, when everything changed. His hand has written a story of 20 pages while he's unconscious. He thinks it's him who have written and yet, it's also not him. This short story was like a comeback for him. But he found nothing in that work, he understands nothing and he doesn't understand even more about all these people liking his work.
But who cares? Editors lineup for his next work, his ego is satisfied, and more than anything, now he gained an audience. But he later realizes that they are not his audience, but rather they are the audience of his work. His honest work was never appreciated. And with an amazing short story, his editor worried if he had become sick when he compared his honest work with his amazing work. For a man who worked hard well into his 30s and 40s as a writer, to be called amateurish, was devastating. He agonizes and sleeps once again, only for another long novel to appear at his desk, again it's a work that's his and not his. Which was again, celebrated more than his honest and conscious effort. At this point he gave up.

"Fine I'll be your puppet", he thought.

"I'll lend my hand at night
You fill your lines out of my sight
On these squares from right to left
Until I'm nothing left

But I enjoy the fruits of your work
Sorry... My Work
For I like pleasure more than pain
For I live with this unending shame

I'm the celebrated
The honored and the revered Mr. N
The Man of the day
The Ghost of the night".

But as with everything, his life comes to an end. However, he was encountered by a little girl who trashed his honest work, once again.
"Did you finish it?" she asked, "Your story about a teenage murderer?".
"Who cares? I gave up on it", he sighs.
"But I wanted to see that. I'm interested in you, because I thought you would change your work, work for a better story. Not bask in my blessings", she says.
The fear of losing pleasure kicks in and Mr. N finally acknowledges that he is nothing. He deceives himself, victimizes himself, that he only wanted a place to belong, that he wanted to fit in. And to all his anguish, the girl replies;
"You are not honest, and I have no interest with dishonest people. Farewell".

Oh how tragic it is. That a writer don't want to write. That all he imagines, inspires, wants to be on the paper needs an honest physical and mental effort. How truly tragic it is to have a mind that wants to write but have a hand that wants to sleeps.

"... He wants everything to be written"

Conclusion

From Best to Worst
Pied Piper of Hamelin (Episode 6)
Hansel & Gretel (Episode 3)
Elves & Shoemaker (Episode 4)
Cinderella (Episode 1)
The Town Musicians of Bremen (Episode 5)
Little Red Riding Hood (Episode 2)


Thank you for reading.

Pluto is my first dive into Naoki Urosawa works (that I completed). I gotta say, he lives upto his reputation for good writing. He builds suspense and mystery with gripping narrative and good characters. Add some great production values with a few skilled staff, you get an anime that's well worth a recommendation, and a great piece of media.
Two Authors, One Story


Pluto is Urusawa's take on "The World's greatest robot" chapter of Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, and I feel the need to preface this. It's not necessary to read it, hell I would even say to not read first because it practically spoils "Pluto", given ... Urasawa's story is a sci-fi murder mystery, while Tezuka's story is a battle shounen. That being said, I want to give a bit of appreciation about how well Urasawa reimagined the whole story.
Tezuka's story, while looks more like a battle shounen on surface with giant robots whose abilities are just superpowers, there's an interesting level of depth in his characters. Pluto, the story's main antagonist, is a killing machine designed to destroy all seven powerful robots, but that doesn't make him an evil character by nature. You see, Pluto is a victim of surroundings. And the story gives snippets of moments to let you feel Pluto's doing what it does because it has no other choice. The story lets you feel this inner turmoil the characters are going through. Urasawa took this inner depth and brought it out to the limelight with a different tone to the story.
"A brain capable of error is called Perfection"
"Pluto" argues that robots achieving manhood is akin to man achieving godhood, a sentinence. That the most human is to be the most flawed, which is ironic considering AI is meant to be flawless. Pluto explores this idea of a flawless machine understanding human flaws, with all the good and bad that brings with it, in a murder mystery plot. Gesicht understanding his hidden hatred, Epsilon understanding sadness, Atom who bears them both, and Pluto understanding madness. There's also a mention of grief with a few other robots as well, but one less explored idea of this is "murder". Is it inately human to kill someone? Brau1589, one of the Urasawa's characters that are not in the Tezuka's story, personifies this idea, that there's no flaw in wanting to kill someone. Most of the story keeps this as an anchoring point that connects to Gesicht and Pluto, but I feel like it doesn't explicitly explores this idea, which is bit of a missed opportunity. Overall though, it tells an interesting duality between humans & robots, is same as flaws & perfection, and how they are tied to each other.

A Reimagination
One thing I especially adored between both works is the difference in how Abullah is handled, which are different in tone.

A big twist is that Abullah, creator of Pluto and Goji, creator of Bora, are the same person, and a robot. Both work in different ways and the difference in how this twist is handled is in the info. Tezuka's twist is about Abullah being a robot. The undertone of this twist is that a robot was able to create a machine that can kill its own kind, and just once but twice. It really sells the idea that he embodies human flaws in his core.
Urasawa's twist is about Abullah being unaware that he has another personality within him, despite being a robot. What I like about Urasawa's twist is how it ties into the show narrative of perfect tobot. A robot capable of lying, even to itself.


Tezuka speaks about society with it being grand and powerful in its message questioning the world, while Urasawa speaks for oneself being a bit more personal, questioning about the self.
Entertainment
This is where I go light on my words and speaks like a regular anime fan. "Pluto" is definitely a great anime to watch. Despite having 1 hour length episode, it keeps you enganged in its story & characters with some great visuals & music aiding it.
Though, from an entertainment perspective, I found the last 2 episode being the most boring, especially episode 7. Epsilon getting an entire episode was bit of an stretch tbh, his character arc is really similar to the regular pacifist protagonist trying to protect his loved ones. He is not a waste of space though, his interactions with Pluto are deemed necessary for dramatic progression of the story, but I think it didn't need to go that long. Brando's story is similar to Epsilon and his arc was neatly wrapped in half an episode.
The Anime also shifts in tone near end, starting as sci-fi murder mystery to giant robo battle shounen. While it's something it couldn't avoid considering what it's adapting, I wish it could've had a bit more smooth transition in tone than a sudden one.

Conclusion
I think Urasawa did an excellent job in breathing new life to an already well made arc. Few hiccups aside, it also stands well as it's own IP (Independent Piece).
Overall, a great work. I'll be looking forward to Urasawa adaptations in future, meanwhile I'll try to complete Billy Bat.

More than the waves we see...

I talk a lot. A whole lot of nonsense piled upon a fragment of truth, I tend to confuse people whenever I talk. Or that's what I think I see in their eyes but how would I know? You feel so insecure about your little truth so you deceive yourself with words and actions, and hear people say you are this and that. Before you notice, you depend on those words, you depend on those responses, their thoughts, and you get consumed by your fake personality so much that one day you look back on your little truth and regret ... was it ever worth all the lies you've built.

"Undercurrent" talks about the little truths we tend to hide from people, how that effects us and everything around us. Kanae takes care of her bathhouse, the community treats her as a strong woman who's living by while having her lovely husband disappear. Why and for what reason he was gone, she never imagined why someone like him disappear on her, but as her lonely time goes on, she questions about whether she really know anything about her husband.

Understanding someone
What does it truly mean to understand someone? In a time where everyone has more than a mask to wear, how do even understand someone? Or what does 'understanding someone' would mean in this context? "Undercurrent" warns you that the ocean is more than the waves you see, people are more than the faces they use. You can declare you know someone for your entire life, yet your 'close friend', your 'girlfriend/boyfriend', your 'family', could one day just leave you for reasons beyond your control and comprehension.
Kanae is a strong married woman who takes care of her bath house, while dealing with the unexplainable disappearance of her husband. She suffers and anguishes over why this has befallen on her, while simultaneously acknowledging the fact that she herself is running from her little truth. A rather disturbing truth she keeps on carrying for her whole life which she never talks about even with her husband she loved so must. Pain and guilt are worth expressing out because you give them a chance to be forgiven. Hiding it will only sink you into its depths until you suffocate and die.
Much like Kanae, kanae's husband and the new guy in bathhouse also suffer with their buried little truths. Though one lies along with it, while the other simply turns their eyes away from it.

At this small shore...
The entire mood of this manga is simple. It doesn't intend to be some grand message I might have explained so far, but it does so in a way that feels personal and oddly normal. The simple art and character designs works in its favor as well.

Conclusion
It's dramatic, tragic, a bit goofy at times and wants one to be a bit open with others. You never know when someone might disappear in your life so why not see more of them, and say your true feelings?

I had a hard time reviewing this show because there is a lot of merit to it that comes from its interesting plotline which has a lot of scope for some fun things to do. But a main demerit is to keep it interesting without making it too unpredictable.
Back in 2021, S1 blew out of nowhere along with another unexpected gem. No one expected for some chinese anime (donugha) to blow up amidst some extremely popular shows like To Your Eternity, Vivy, 86, Tokyo Revengers etc. While the show is praised for being a fine thriller, I particularly don't like this part of the show. ... A big issue with this show is it's unpredictability. While that works in favor of the plot to grow, it doesn't seem to end. We have yet to have a clear picture on how the powers are getting manifested, though a clear trigger has been established. Or how many more characters are there to explore. While that feels exciting on its own, I can't help but fear it gets boring eventually.

But one thing that I really like is it's strong storytelling, particularly the emotional part. The show never fails to bring you into the psyche of its characters with powerful visuals, portraying some of the best psychological depiction of loss, helplessness, trauma, envy, along others. It also doesn't back down in crafting thrilling scenes with captivating narrative and a much thicker plot devoid of the episodic storytelling as in S1. This season steeped up a bit in action department. There's a fair share of fluid hand combat scenes that's kind of rare territory in action in anime. A lot of anime or manga tend to focus more on the weapon based, magic based battles that got very generic. While not the most amazing, the action scenes in Link Click deserve a praise for just giving a good hand to hand brawl, and quite a lot of them too.

The characters grew in number too, especially those with plot relevance. The main characters of this show are definitely the Li siblings. Their backstory, while not innovative in theme, stills pulls an effective depiction of violence and trauma. That people can go different ways despite living under the same roof, yet always trying to protect the other. We also got a tease of sort about Lu Guang, and that we still don't know anything about his past. Maybe S3 explores him, hopefully.
Though there are some characters that just felt not well utilized or straight up irritating. Like that bodyguard that only seem to be there just to constantly mock everyone, or the lady subordinate who had like one cool fight and got hit in the head. I seriously felt for Li Xiao though, man went through so much grief this season. The character study behind the lawyer was interesting, and a bit similar in tone with the sibling story, but he too became a little madman in the end. The grandpa was cool tho.

Conclusion
Overall, I like this season more than S1. It feels balanced in everything it set out to do, with a few inconveniences that are just rooted to S1. No hate to S2, but I really missed S1 OP and ED.

Anime with marriage as a center of focus were quite rare to say the least. So I was long waiting for this show to air from an year ago during its announcement. And when I watched the first episode, one of my immediate thoughts was "My mum would love this", because this show is melodramatic to an extreme.
Basically, our damsel in distress "Miyo" has an abusive family (to say the least) in Meiji Japan and on one rainy day, they decided to get rid of her by marrying her to the rumored bad husband material in the town. Only thing they missed, is that this ... husband-to-be "Kuduo Kiyoka" has such a pretty face that the girl goes head over sandals for him. And what follows is a nice and wholesome training session for Miyo to become the best wife material for Kudou with one of the wholesomy granny...with a spice of magic and demons in the mix?

Yeah, one of the first unexpected moment I had was when Miyo had a self loathing session for not having the "sight", which is an indicator that she can manifest magic, which also explains why the whole family hates her. I was kinda expecting a conventional marriage dramedy rooted in that period of Japan, but the fantasy setting kind of took that fun away. Because being a fantasy anime and how Miyo's entire characterization roots into the magic element, there's nothing much explored on the culture part than just a few backgrounds. The fantasy element is pretty basic as well. Different families inherit different powers like thunder, fire, healing, mind control, so and so. Much of the conflict is grounded on this basic fantasy element, so I had quite the trouble to bare with it.

Now to the characters. And oh boy! Remember when I said "melodramatic"? Yeah, these characters are really the textbook definitions of all the tropes you would see in any drama of this sort of premise. Damsel in distress and her ice prince, shitty family who deserve a good slap, goofy subordinate, gory demons, etc. I would really not recommend if these seem like a immediate red flags to you. But what sold me to this show is the execution.

The melodrama and cliche characters are married to an excellent execution. From the gorgeous animation, well-crafted shots and solid voice acting, the anime keeps your eyes peeled on your screen. Whether they are a slow and tender moments like any scene between Miyo and Kudou, or a more serious character moment like Miyo "abuse" scene or her confronting her past self in the final act, to a more action heavy scene like Kudou barging into the Saimori household; the anime knows how to craft a gripping scene and it shines throughout it's runtime. While it might seem like effort could spared for a much realistic story, nevertheless, what we are left with is a see a solid show working with basic ideas.

Conclusion
It's not usual that we get a show revolving around married couple. It's also pretty unusual for it be on a more serious tone, but "My Happy Marriage" is a beautiful tale that deserves a bouquet of flowers.

It's hard writing a review on an isekai without mentioning the whole genre.
Isekais are famous for having crazy ideas distilled into bland, boring and uninteresting narratives & characters. I never really watched that many isekais, but the overall hate surrounding the genre makes me want to avoid it. The way I see it, most of these fall into the "forgettable fun" or "cool to hate" shows. But there are some rare shows that do some cool things.
ReZero works around the overpowered trope by taking a normal/not OP human to suffer in a generic isekai, Mushoku Tensei works around the "another world, another chance" trope by ... taking a worst MC to go on a redemption arc,
And then there's Log Horizon, which works around the "fun" trope about gamers trapped in a game-like world, and building an absolutely fun world.

The really strong point of Log Horizon is the world building. I'm not saying everything is new here, if you have watched enough isekais or played enough MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games), you wouldn't be missing anything new. But what makes the Anime so much fun to watch, is because of its multilayered world. The story is divided into four parts.

1. The first part being an introduction with our OP characters going on, what looks like a simple quest, "Save the Nakama". By the end of this arc, we get to see who are the important characters to the story, and how the basic fantasy system works in this world.
2. The second part would be a "Politicking". With some of the important characters of the world exchanging words around a round table. This is basically where the mind games start that seem to doesn't end, even when this arc ends.
3. The third part would be a "Fantasy-thriller", with two stories going on different routes that ultimately get linked by introducing a key element in the magic system that ultimately changes things forever.
4. The last part would be a "Filler-ish" segment. With focus on some cliched romance tropes and a less interesting mind game that just exists.

All of these parts themselves aren't great enough to be compared to other anime, but it's the culmination of all these less-than-great segments that form into a living, breathing world that there always seem to be some new, unexplored thing in the corner, waiting to open even more possibilities.

The characters in Log Horizon, just like its world, just seem to be never ending. There are so many characters that you feel like you might lose sight on them, but the story does a great job at linking all these characters so that no one gets forgotten. Just like the world, the characters can also be divided into 3 types.

1. The OPs: These are basically the OP gamers with highest level (Lv 90). Anytime the world seem to experience a change, it's these characters that stand at the front line. Shiroe, Crusty, Henrietta, Michitaka to name a few.


2. The Rookies: As the name suggests, these are the beginners that are following the footsteps the OPs paved. While basically they're just characters with regular shounen tropes, there's a very interesting twist surrounding these characters. Minori, Touya, Isuzu, Rudy to name a few.

3. The People of Land: These are basically NPC except now, they play a part on the story. While not as important and many as the gamers, a select few characters are going to change the trajectory of the story. Though for now, only Lannesia is the best and only example here.

While I definitely appreciate for the wide variety of characters and tropes, a downfall to the show is that these characters, as varied as they might be, are still going to be forgettable. The Anime is plot focussed, meaning anything that happens to the characters, or by the characters, or for the characters, is became it has a significant effect on the world. Anything outside this rule, is either boring or unintentional. And everything that happens between Shiro, Akatsuki, Minori (& even Henrietta) is unneeded.

Though one thing I'll praise again, is how well they are interconnected, and how much the direction makes it engaging to sit through, even when the emotional beats and pro gamers moves seem superficial and bland.

It's really a sin to take about this Anime without talking about it's banger of an opening song. A song that both gamers and programmers can jam to. I like the ending too, which I think is a little less appreciated.


Conclusion
If Isekais are about fun, then Log Horizon is one of the best Isekais to choose. Despite all its deep-as-a-puddle characters and less-than-great segments, Log Horizon is a well balanced bundle of action, fantasy, adventure, politics, economics, and importantly, an immersive other world.

A story told from the side of a Devil

We've seen many stories where good and evil sides are clear. Where, from a moral standpoint, the good guy is helmed as the victor. And thanks to commercial greed, we got an abundance of those and we eventually got tired of them.
Then came "Grey stories", where the morality of the characters is generally can not be easily described as good or evil. But most of the time, these morally grey characters ends up being a couple of assholes with no real moral compass, or even worse, hypocrites with a pretense morals.
What Chainsaw Man does is instead of ... letting its characters in a battle of morals, it keeps them in a battle of motives. And I think this is where Chainsaw Man really succeeds, by making its protagonist, Denji the Dog, a complete animal. He's someone who lives only through feeding his instincts. Those instincts being eat, sleep, and sex. He doesn't care whether it's a human or a devil, as long as they provide it for him. The enemies might make a moral point, and might actually be in right side, but in this world, it doesn't matter if you are right or wrong. What matters is your fight for what you believe. If you lose, then you are wrong.
But later on, he starts to question whether these are all the reasons there's to live. Sure, he lived a life worse than a dog, but there's more to life than just primary needs. But sadly, the anime just ends here, with no mention of a continuation.

(Mild spoilers for characters)
The side characters are a bit different to Denji, as they fall into general archetypes we are familiar in battle shounen. Aki the revenge ninja, Himeno the deadly hot chick, Power who's basically Denji's sibling from another mother, and of course, Makima, who's a real mystery.
Aki goes from a dignified revenger to "maybe it's not bad to kick your enemy in the balls for fun" kinda dude, Himeno goes from being a lady with the ghost hand to being a straight ghost, Power's just Power all the time, and Makima being a behind-the-scenes manipulator the whole time making her the most mysterious and most frightening of all.
The story follows these core characters whose decisions make them seem like they are the bad ones. Two examples that come to mind are; Denji vs the Leech Demon, and Denji vs the Samurai Demon. In both cases, the demons are the ones with right intentions while Denji acts as a force to question the power of those intentions.
The story takes place in an unfair world, and the unfairness can be seen in every character arc but one that particularly hit me the feels was;


Stylistic Chaos (kind of)
With the treatment this Anime got, I feel like it's kinda wasted to view this on a small screen, because it definitely feels like it belongs to the big screens. It's really stylish and cinematic, but that's kinda the problem because the aesthetic choice doesn't go hand-in-hand with the story's tone.
Having two characters, one with chainsaws for his head & limbs, and the other with katanas for his head & limbs, dueling on a train completely filled with people, sounding way more chaotic in my head than whatever I saw. The only time I felt pure chaos was during the fight between Denji & the 8th floor demon. It was raw & intense, and for a good few moments I really thought I might hold a few seconds to just breathe. It was extremely well handled but that's one in a few. Remaining action segments are mostly sakuga flair which were very enjoyable on their own, but feels different from the remaining segments.

I just like the OST a lot, I've been listening to these even before watching the Anime. Especially, "living room" is my favorite.
I also like how "Sword of Hunter" just sounds like a more broken version of "Edge of Chainsaw", which plays when Aki hunts the snake demons, after what he had experienced. Very fitting.
Conclusion
A chaotic story of devils told with stylistic audiovisuals that almost feels cinematic. While it couldn't be the cultural phenomenon the producers and manga fans wanted it to be, it's still an experience well worth getting into, and a respectable work worthy of every penny and praise it gets.
(The Dub is not bad but a few moments were not well handled. So, maybe stick to the sub).

Oh look, We got another Fate.
Not like we don't have much that or anything.
I vividly remember, when I completed Heavens Feel 2 and thought, "Damn! I should binge the third movie rn!" Only to realize I've to wait for nearly 1 more year for the third feel movie (this was also the same time I was waiting for Dawn of the Deep Soul). And this happened nearly... 3 years ago?! Wtf? Was it already 3 years from the pandemic?
...
Anyway, I'm feeling a very similar emotion with Strange Fake. I didn't expect much when the announcement was made nearly 3 seasons ago but after watching this, ... I kind of wanna see where this'll go.
But of course, there's always one burning question regarding Fate, that I'm pretty sure even typemoon can never answer.

Where do I start?
Now there are many people n forums n sites that do wayy better job at this than I do, but since I'm kinda bored, I'll try to assume a few of your thought process on why you might've wanted to get into Fate. But here's a rule I followed that made my life easier when getting into Fate;
Just because someone's recommending it, doesn't mean it's necessary.
Most anime recommendations of Fate are basically telling, "In this way, you won't be having trouble", which is a very false statement when getting into Fate Anime. The only way everyone collectively agreed but still ignored is to "Read the Visual Novel", which most anime-only won't commit because it takes like a 100 hours, and a day doesn't have 100 hours.
With that aside;

(Assuming you are new);

You: I've never consumed a single piece of media regarding Fate
Me: Good. Let's keep it that way.

- I only want to watch this because of this one random clip I saw on YT (or something).
If you promise me that you won't get into this series or anything regarding Fate ever again, then go ahead. But I'm placing my bets most of you are going get into. Eventually.

- Is this special standalone?
Yes, you shouldn't have a problem following what's happening in this special
But many spinoffs of Fate kind of assume that you are familiar with the franchise, because they do such a shit job at explaining plot points. They just info dump it in a couple of minutes, while Fate/Zero takes nearly 3 episodes to do that. Basically, the narration won't be a problem but some plot points might not make sense without prior knowledge.

- Is there anything I have to watch before watching Strange Fake?
If you have watched every Fate made by ufotable (i.e., Zero, Unlimited Blade Works & Heaven's Feel), you are good to watch any spinoff you want. There isn't any particular order for watching spinoffs.

(Assuming you watched all the ufotable ones)
Maybe watch Lord El-Melloi case files (I should watch this too) and Grand Order - Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia to understand what's Waver is doing here all grown-up and a small background between Gilgamesh & Enkidu.

The fake Holy Grail War in Strange Fake doesn't have a Saber in it, and you don't need those incarnation circles to summon legends. And instead of Japan, this war is happening in Snowfield, USA. This special is like a prologue.
Being a special in Fate, the animation is top notch. The entire segment with Gil and Enkidu is a visual eye candy, and there are a bunch of other moments that were neatly packed in a 50 minute special.
What I'm really looking forward to is the plot. Holy Grail war opens the curtain for some interesting ideas. You have legends with their larger than life personalities stealing every moment they are in and you have mages in a cat-&-mouse battle royale. With nearly 20 characters, and this entry being written by the same guy behind Baccano! and Durarara!!, I'm kinda excited to see his spin on Fate.

Conclusion
Hope this helped.

This is the 2nd time I'm reviewing a seasonal involving E-Sports. Is this is a sign?

Thinking about it now, I'm kinda surprised that Yamada Lv. 999 is actually the popular romcom this season, beating Over the Moon S2, Insomniacs, Dangers in my Heart, Skip & Loafer, and even Kaguya finale; at least that's what the numbers say.
Note: This is the only romcom I've watched this season. I've read Dangers in my Heart and Insomniacs for a good amount of chapters, so I skipped the Anime. Heard nothing but praise for Skip & Loafer even way before the anime came out but I'm kinda postponing on ... it for a few days. Haven't watched Tonikaku S1, or Kaguya S2 so I can't talk about them.
It seems like everyone collectively agreed that between all the popular battle shounens and psychological seinens, this is the safe and cute seasonal romcom that's there just to chillax.
I like to remind people that this is a Madhouse shoujo Anime, and that's actually the main reason I've picked this, because Madhouse made a shoujo sports Anime that I really liked. Except Loving Yamada isn't a sports Anime, it's an E-Sports Anime.

Yamada is the good-looking quiet chick magnet and also a pro gamer, while Akane is a cute & klutzy freshly dumped college girl. After some karmic events, Akane starts crying in the middle of a gaming event, a ball of sunshine melting in the middle of everyone, until an ice cold prince approaches and asks, "Is this your shoe?", while holding her dropped heal. The boy met the girl.

As previously implied, the stakes are pretty low and so is the emotional punch. The characters would be dealing with breakup, jealousy, first love, moving on and all the regular romcom stuff told with a soft tone. It isn't particularly groundbreaking in the way it handles its themes, but it's still a relaxing watch with all the slow pace.

The direction is something I like in this one. Reminds me of chihayafuru, except it isn't as dynamic since despite being an Anime about online gamers, the focus was more on their real life interactions, than their in-game skills. It focusses more on their mundane situations, relationships (especially with Akane), and situational chibbi gags. The art looks like pencil sketched, which is well suited for a laid back setup. One more that adds to the tone is the Lo-fi background score. Really soothing at times.

As for the anime, it's incomplete. They gave a bit of a satisfying conclusion and left room for continuation, but nothing's confirmed so far. As for the story, depending on who you root for, the ending would be different. But since this is a regular seasonal, I'm pretty sure most people align with the story's conclusion. Because, god damn! No matter how much generic romcoms I watch, they somehow always manage to make the confessions very special. And the adorable confession at the end in this one, left a big smile.

Conclusion
This is yet another seasonal anime where it's more about fun, and less about substance & impact. If you are in for the cute characters, laid back tone, and/or care the romance, this'll help as a short break.