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Ishida's second feature film after the amazing and underrated film of Penguin Highway, I genuinely think it's another fantastic work from a very talented director. I usually don't write reviews but seeing it go under the radar and getting ridiculous flak, I have to step up and tell why this film is pretty damn good - with some flaws of course.

I think three parts of the films really stand out to me which I feel that makes this film as good as it is.

Characters: I think the characters in this series surprised me the most from the film. It's all and well having straight up ... likable main characters can do no wrong but in Drifting Home - the main characters are flawed, a bit messed up but have a lot of heart and it is why I really loved them. Natsume and Kousuke relationship are of friends that drifted apart due to some personal drama - and the awkwardness and tension between them was really interesting to me. They acted brash, imperfect but never to an extent where they are unlikable to me. Kids are kids and seeing them slowly make up after being real awkward with each other was really nice. Some may not like them at the start but they felt like proper children in that sense which I enjoyed.

The side characters on the other hand were really fun and made for a perfect foil to the main two. They were simply bystanders trying to get along with their friends and I think their childlike charm really helped push the story along and made me really smile whenever they were having fun - doing kids things.

Visuals: I'll keep this short but the visuals were pretty amazing. Not only the background and animation but the expressions on the characters really made me so happy inside. Charming as hell and I was enthralled by it. A feast for the eyes, Studio Colorido did real well.

Theme and Story: I love when anime films tackle themes that are outside the usual romance that we see in so many films these days. The theme of forgiveness and letting go is not a new one but done so well because it constantly plays on in the background of the film - remaining a huge pillar from start to end. We see Natsume being very distant from the moment go and it's hard to tell why she is the way she is. But as it slowly unravels, we can see how she is struggling to let go - her whole life has been a lot about goodbyes and sometimes people forget that they are simply kids. Natsume tried so hard to keep her feelings to her chest and it was a big reason why Kousuke misunderstood her. Sometimes, it's good to let it out and when it did, the film felt like relief to me after an hour of slowburn emotions. Natsume - busy hanging onto a lot of her old memories - the grandpa, the apartment and all, could finally let go and start anew. Things like this really was nice to see.

To go with some negatives, I do think the dialogue of the kids were a bit too adult-like, just a smidge. And the pacing could have been slightly better which dropped it from being just perfect. But, these are small nitpicks in a really good film which I'll have to rewatch to see if it holds up. Please watch the show and form your own opinion. Thanks for reading!

There's something really special about Soremachi as a manga that really gets me. A manga from the talented Masakazu Ishiguro, it has gone pretty much unnoticed among the Western community but has gotten critically great reception and awards from Japan, winning the Excellence award for the Japanese Media Arts Festival in 2015 and amazingly, the best scifi manga in the Seiun Awards.

People say slice of life as a series can get boring over time but Soremachi has proved that wrong time and time again. In Soremachi, you follow the charismatic and bumbling but lovable fool of a character in Hotori Arashiyama - a high ... school student working in a maid cafe for 3 years of her high school life. That's it. Yet, the story of Hotori's life throughout these 3 years is so well-done, seamlessly weaving through her life - interacting with the many characters, solving various mysteries and dramas, and just living her life her own way. What really stands out is the growth of Hotori in these 3 years, you can truly feel that she has evolved as a person the more you read the manga and by the end, I couldn't help having tears in my eyes like a proud father watching her daughter grow up.

What Soremachi does right, among many things is quite simply knowing how to nail slice of life in the best way. The series is full of life with many diverse characters from all walks of life in the small bustling town of Maruko Shopping District. And they aren't cookie-cutter characters either, but characters that have their own story, personalities, quirks and charm to them with great interactions with the main cast. They have their own families, brothers and sisters as well as parents which do not magically disappear like most manga do. It feels so goddamn organic and that's why they feel so real as well as the town itself and the moment I flipped the last page, I already have missed the characters like they were my very own family.

The many stories in this series really appeal to me. They never come off as generic but instead feels natural with every chapter building up to a certain event in a future chapter and there's this feeling of continuity that is oh so satisfying. Some chapters can be real emotional and some can be super funny. This mix really shows the many colours of life one can go through and it never gets old. The comedy in this series as well is top notch. It stands out simply because it is so different (and much better) from the many romcoms and SOL type of comedy out there. There are no cheap and overused gags with random references but very smart comedy with a lot of buildup which gets so satisfying when you reach the punchline. I adore this kind of comedy, smart and interesting.


Lastly, this series has this amazing blend of what is already amazing SOL elements with surrealistic and sci-fi elements as well. It's a masterpiece in a sense that it never feels out of place when something out of the ordinary happens and that I felt that it actually suits the town in a way. It's hard to describe but it really does feel special and I always smile reading these chapters and how genius it turns out to be.

I urge everyone to try giving this a read and def stick with it for a few volumes or more for this manga as the introduction of the characters happen early on. Once I started getting into more chapters, this is when Soremachi really started being a masterpiece. You know it's a great manga when it all ends and that emptiness starts filling your heart as you leave the town of Soremachi behind - and yet the town moves.

This movie is quite simply a triumph for football anime as a whole. Adapted from Arakawa's first ever manga - Sayonara Football - it acts as a prequel to the manga and also the TV series anime, Farewell My Dear Cramer. It tells the events of Nozomi Onda back in middle school as she tries her hardest to break into the boys' football team against all the odds.

I gave this series an easy 10 because it nails everything genuine about football as a sport and a way of life. Plenty of football anime struggles to stay grounded when telling their stories but with this movie, ... it understands the essence of football to its very core level and how that anybody can fall in love with football and play it. No superpowers, unrealistic movements or ridiculous situations. Just a girl that wants to play football and wants to do so really badly.

And speaking about Onda, her as a main character carries the show on her shoulders really well. She represents why billions of football fans love the sport so much. She lives and breathes football - and watching it in front of eyes makes her heart beat even faster as she wants to be out there playing football and not sitting on the bench. She has so much talent and most importantly- determination. She's a stubborn little gorilla but she does so in a way that never comes off as annoying but endearing. And that's why she is so admired and why I fell in love with her.


Story-wise, the whole battle of the sexes plotline has been done to death in all forms of media but this movie executes it really well by not having Onda magically destroy her more powerful and physically imposing male counterparts. I won't spoil what she does but she uses her brilliant brain and of course mazy feet to counter the physical aspect and it makes for a wonderful climax as she executes them.

A last note on the CG animation, people seem to have a hate boner for them as it was used a little bit in the movie but I think it was great CG and how it should be used in anime. Football is such a dynamic sport with balls moving from back to front in mere seconds - the use of CG manages to envelope me into the game like I was watching it in real life. There is plenty of traditional animation here as well which was done great too and it was such a fun ride.

All in all, a fantastic movie and was a fitting adaptation to the wonderful manga as it says Sayonara Football to Onda in middle school - off to experience beautiful football in its sequel anime and raise the level of girls football.

This show is one of the best this season and my personal favourite. I love the world building, the setting, the character design and the suspenseful moments it delivers. No generic romance or fanservice to interrupt the flow of the story which is really well paced. I never had to check how many minutes are left, it's just so good.

It's urban fantasy with no isekai elements or anything but great dark and engaging themes where you explore BOTH sides of these factions that seems to have understandable motivations as we explore their story further and further. There's good use of political intrigue, similar to ACCA ... 13, the setting of FMAB and it keeps you wondering at times.

It's a show that does visual world building and story-telling, you can understand the character motivations without them monologuing half the time to you and it's what I really want from shows like this.


The characters of this series are really good and they all have their backstories and really distinctive personalities, even the smaller but very memorable characters like Schaake, Benjamin, Arnolt and Irma.

Ultimately, the series kind of does a dual main character viewpoint with more weight on Inumanuel than Leo but both have their roles to play. Inu is my favourite MC of the year, he has this cowardly streak about him but it's really satisfying to see him grow and even though he can be a bit of a coward, his heart is always in the right place and this is what makes him so compelling to watch. The emotions are always on point with him, he alone can carry this show.


Leocadio is also a very interesting character as he balances the morality of his actions against the logic of following an order, haunted by the tragedy on its past. And so many more other characters that we see their viewpoint from which makes the world so much more interesting, yet never feeling bloated at the same time.

Music is awesome by composer of Gundam IBO and YLIA, background art is freaking awesome and this show was just made for me. The animation does suffer near the 2nd half of the series but honestly, the story carries the series very well and I much prefer a really good story than stellar animation.

At the end, it's a pretty unique series, tackling serious dark urban fantasy themes with some supernatural elements, with an amazing and underrated cast of characters. This show deserves more love but at the end, give it a chance, it's a hidden gem for a reason.