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You are not immune to propaganda. You think you are, but you're not. Because propaganda, like politics, operates as a brain programmer at the subconscious level. It's why you feel like you're taking a political stance on pineapple pizza even though you know the whole truth - that people have their own simple preferences.

To literally everyone in the world, nobody but me can find a reason to recommend this piece of propaganda. That's why I'm doing it. Because I'm that much better of a reviewer than you.

Let's get the pleasantries out of the way. Chouetsu Sekai is one of the most disgusting pieces of media ... in the existence of humanity. By itself, it looks innocuous. But if you take a look at the lore, you will immediately realize just how fine of a rope I'm walking here.

But just letting you know, it's a pretty long yap as it serves as a barrier to my recommendation. So if you're not interested in long ass yapyapyaps, you're more than welcome to skip this review/propaganda. Anyways, this review will yap about the following questions:

1. How was the experience of watching religious propaganda from a neutral perspective? (Bizarre)
2. How effective is this propaganda? (Thankfully, most likely ineffective)
3. Why is the MAL user score not a 1? (Read the review)

"About duplicity, don't mislead one another." - 7th Precept
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Surprisingly, when you really think about it, the best way to watch Chouetsu Sekai is without any expectations - like any other anime you'd watch and consoom. That's because the target of this propaganda (the kids) would be consuming it in the same way. The parents control the TV, so they would simply present the propaganda and the kids would absorb Jesus or something. That's the theory.

Unsurprisingly, I'm more fascinated by the technical details of the propaganda rather than the content itself. I mean, this came out in the '90s! Remember, exactly because this was made for kids, it ends up competing in the same headspace with OG Pokemon for instance! I know, anachronistic comparison, but you get the point, right?

Even though the propaganda has 10 episodes, they are all 6 minute propaganda pieces each. 1hr of a false Jesus in comparison to a 12ep cour (~5hrs) or 24ep (~9.5hrs). The most important detail is that of course, ***this propaganda was made in-house.***

"About falsehood, don't speak untruthfully." - 5th Precept
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Calling it cheap and pathetic is so basic. It's like hating a McDonald's burger for being cheap... when every burger has a place and purpose like a true art-form...

Credit where credit's due, Chouetsu Sekai is bizarrely pretty well produced. Undoubtedly so. Because if your budget is limited to the bank of prayer money scammed from dumb parents and elderly, there's only so much you can do.

The side VAs are most likely B-tier cultists who will work for free, the backgrounds are cheap, the actual animations are even cheaper, the message is clear, the vision is warming, the tonal pitch is directed well enough, and you DO want your isekai to be a good one, right?

It's as cheap as you can get! Yet, despite it all, you can make funny memes out of these animated snippets. They're all great toxic fodder for the false Jesus reaction gifs.

The propaganda was boring for the most part, as the propaganda elected to be more of a lecture than an actual show as expected) And that wasn't even mentioning the rudimentary animated tales, the disgustingly suggestive services, nor the outright creepy overwatch THE GLORIOUS "GURU" HAS.

A good chunk of the show is dedicated to a shining white light that lectures you on cult values. In the last two episodes, they realized the potential of this and finally evolved this medium by overlaying a picture of the false Jesus. Neat!

So, yeah. Pretty bizarre experience.

"About duplicity, don't mislead one another." - 7th Precept
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When you think about propaganda and the forms it could come in, people always question the effectiveness. Some people don't even question it at all and assume the worst possible scenario, reasonably so. Unfortunately, yapping about propaganda faithfully and not maliciously is one of the best way to combat propaganda.

Effective propaganda from my rudimentary view be distilled into the following equation:

Effective propaganda = Exposure x Vibes x Distribution

Distribution could only occur at the parental level. Parents in those days would be buying crummy VHS tapes. They'd also have the TV. You wouldn't sell this to kids... the kids never have any money for GMO-free propaganda nor TVs...

The kid's exposure to such propaganda is limited to the parent's choice. And even then, it's only 6 mins per episode. Watching any other anime within the time period would definitely be more entertaining...

The vibes, and this is the most important one, wasn't good. It turns out that kids aren't very impressionable unless directly controlled and entertained. The propaganda was primarily designed for kids but had no entertainment value whatsoever. If the target kid exposed themselves to another kid external to the cult, the chances of disillusionment become that much higher (good thing).

So if you asked me, I think the only children that would be susceptible to this are those with compulsive controlling parents. The only scenario where this could be truly effective is within an isolated environment where there aren't any sources of "good" information like any other truly evil cult I guess.

I put "good" in quotes, but a kid can easily disillusion themself by just being near other kids! Eating ice cream with people outside of your cult family! Literally watching better anime! Quite literally separating them from the isolation!!!! Easier said than done, I know.

"About delusion, don't deny the Truth with ignorance." - 10th precept
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The Anime Man rightfully raises a concern with MAL's user score on propaganda. It's much more higher than the score on AniDB! It's a sign of concern that should only be taken seriously if it's still a threat today!! You MUST vote with a bad rating to showcase your solidarity with the tragedies of the past!!!

But pain is generational, its awareness reigniting old hatred, forgotten but never forgiven. It's one thing to make people aware past horrid tragedies, it's a completely other thing to directly force an opinion onto an observer - that'd be political!

I don't think this specific propaganda piece is that big of a deal today. Again, conditions for this propaganda to be effective would involve complete parental control. They would have to control and promote the narrative to their kids. Outside of that, you also need to be pretty vulnerable to let a false Jesus in your heart. A weird ass nerd recommending this to you has to have a different weight than a cultish parent, right?

That's not to say that this propaganda no longer has the capabilities to leave impressions on the vulnerable. I'm not going to assume something THAT nuclear.

And so, knowing what I know, MAL's score of 4.76 from 435 users (at the time of writing) makes complete sense to me.

MAL exists as a database and community, which would imply a sense of enthusiasm. Enthusiasm would at least get you to read the synopsis... anything lower and you'd be treating anime exactly like thoughtless TV. That isn't a bad thing btw. You watch how you want to watch, boo.

In the end, the kids thought this trash was mid. Chances are that they're too young to feel the excruciating pain of the past. That's okay, nobody should feel that. Leave it for crazy people like me. The reviewers were more negative in general. They were more correct.

Honestly, this is okay too. With exposure to the internet, communities to slap you if you're weird, I think this propaganda is safe to consume for fun and fun alone!

The World Ends With You
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I think Chouetsu Sekai failed as a propaganda piece both today and within the past. A whimsical experiment that only serves to waste an hour of your time today.

That's not to sweep the danger of propaganda under the bed, the danger very well exists today. YOU ARE NOT IMMUNE TO PROPAGANDA. They just won't be using this shitty propaganda piece to exploit the common man.

Chouetsu Sekai exists today as a fragment of history. Bad history. Unsavoury history. A glimpse into what true evil can produce. If you wanted to see what a product of raw evil looks like...

It would be the only reason why I could recommend this 1/10 garbage to you. It's entirely forgettable otherwise.

Until next time.

What does it feel like to stand on top of a mountain? Why, nothing more than liberation! An insurmountable challenge, conquered by nothing more than humanity's finest!

Summit of the Gods is about mountaineering, but it's about the circumstances too. How can it not be? It's not like Nepal is willing to sponsor your trip to mount Everest!

Oh! Yeah, that's the part nobody wants to mention. It's a rich man's activity. The rich man would do it for the experience, just to see the glory and then gloat about it to your rich friends who had also scaled the walls 5 summers prior. They're just as ... gormless as you'd imagine.

Summit of the Gods is most comparable to Grand Blue. It shows the lifestyle required for the hobby, shows you sights you can only see at the top of mountains, and tells a riveting story around it!

One of the truths it explores is one of glory and its ephemeral nature. Because normies enjoy being normies (good thing), they don't have an eye for the craft (also good thing). For mountaineering in particular, its glory is upheld by the accomplishment. That is to say, people only care if you accomplished it or not. No more no less. With regards to mountain climbing lore, only the first person to accomplish the feat will have their name remembered.

Even among the hobbyists, there are those that stand out for their ungodly attributes. The crackheads that take the craft to demonic heights! Not for the craft, but always for themselves.

I'm often reminded of my own video game exploits, because there's a lot of gamers out there and a lot of them are pretty fucking dumb. Just like climbing mountains, achieving a high degree of success in… well anything would require a high sense of self. You'd need a sharp sense of ethics and philosophy to cut through all of the noise!

But even then my enthusiasm has to be stifled. I can't talk about my exploits without being overbearing. In that sense, I am exactly like Jouji Habu. I am alone. I have an unmatchable tenacity. Hardcore tasks are just warmups for me on this lovely Tuesday morning.

Despite my video game exploits being rather legendary, they are nothing more than campfire stories. Passing muses that only highlight how much more experienced I am over the casual. Why would the world care about my exploits and insight when the next v-tuber looks hotter than me anyways? Nobody cares about real passion…

And therein lies the beauty. It's the untold stories that only the passionate would know about. Only they could know how beautiful that crackhead really was. But finding information on legendary crackheads, even that is a legendary pursuit in of itself!

The people end up maintaining the spirit of the mountains by withholding its secrets. The sights that I saw at the top of my game were no different than those who conquered the summits. They were glorious, plain and simple.

In conclusion,

ROCK & STONE/10

Until next time.

To the casual consoomer, Lookism reads pretty well. But on a closer look, Lookism is perhaps one of the most ironic products to exist. Whether or not you find this good is up to whatever your beautiful subjective opinion is. To me, this is one of the ugliest things I've ever seen.

Story:
The premise can be described in a one-liner that's just as intriguing as Squid Game. "Squid Game is about the horrific games people play to escape poverty" vs. "Lookism is social commentary on the outward perception of beauty standards". But as intriguing as it is, it is equally a disappointment. Moreso with Lookism than ... Squid Game, because at least Squid Game has an ending.

Lookism follows the tale of a ugly unmemorable protag who yearns to be strong. And then protag gets the ideal male body dumped beside him for whatever reason. The reader gets treated to an episodic adventure featuring ugly people and beautiful people. But I'll be real with you, I can't recall anything that's worth talking about.

That's because Lookism doesn't have an overarching story nor goals. That's where it fails as a social commentary in the same way Squid Game fails as a show about the human condition.

Lookism as a commercial product that has a story as a service. The episodic nature is a clear characteristic of it, the incremental-yet-inconsequential progress and growth of characters is another.

The biggest red flag I spotted was when the protag's ugly form did something that felt mildly heroic and ended up saving a beautiful girl. But the beautiful girl still called protag a pig. What the fuck is this? It clearly showed how much of a "social commentary" it was when the beautiful girl wasn't even interested in the name of the protag's ugly form.

I don't think it'll get any better from there. If it does, it'll happen wayyy too late, promoting excess overconsumption and will just ultimately be a waste of my time. The fact that the red flag is more memorable than the rest of the story proves that this story is utter rubbish I M H O.

Characters
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When my favourite character is literally the dude who doesn't say a SINGLE word and still manages to be the goodest of all boys, it shows that the rest of the characters have nothing noteworthy to talk about.

Every one of them follows a trope and shows incremental growth. When someone does show legitimate growth, it usually comes from them being punched for being a bad person.

Art
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Oh boy. This one's ugly.

We all want to believe that there are some jazzy-chocolatey-undertones beneath the superficiality. Especially in a piece of media that "challenges beauty standards..."

The biggest flaw in this... "artwork"... is that it lacks the human element. The ugly people presented are horrific overexaggerated caricatures, because of course they are. The author wants you to be sympathetic to gumball-chin characters who want to be strong.

But the over exaggeration doesn't stop at the ugly, it subtly extends to those who are beautiful as well. The lack of (but not complete lack-of) body diversity coincides with the lack of characters as a whole. The only defining features of a character can only be seen through the shape of their head... which devalues the concept as a whole when I'm being shown ugly head after ugly head and am expected to show the same amount of sympathy every time.

Conclusion
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This manwha has nothing but superficiality to show. Characters are cheap with little nuance to them and they don't feel human as a result. The fact that Lookism is completely character-driven makes it an ironic "social commentary", because it uses the "commentary" to generate positive buzz and cheap/worthless sentimentality instead of exploring harrowing real life aspects. Another classic example of wasting ideas.

I don't read many manwha. I don't consider myself a fan of manwha. My opinion of manwha is poopoo cringe irrelevance. But after reading Lookism, I can't help but think that manwha is just not for me.

Manwha, in my opinion, is inferior to manga. Manga has always had a clear focus on quality, which is why its efforts are appreciated to the extent that it is overseas. Staples like Berserk continue to reverberate through generations disregarding criticism at every corner.

Manwha, on the other hand, is a concentrated commercial product. It's designed to be vertically scrolled through. It has so much content, yet amounts to very little in the grand scheme of things. It rejects realism in favour of fantasy because that clearly has potential to sell more. Because it probably operates similar to Manga, it probably has even less risk-taking than manga. Lookism is a prime example.

Sure, manwha has reached overseas, but none of the manwha I've read have an explicit well-rounded focus on quality. In a sense, this is to be expected. Because manwha as a whole is more constrained than the manga format. But then again, you won't catch me changing my 10/10 rating on Solo Leveling because I LOVE MY STUPID EXPLOSIONS.

In conclusion,

Lookism is an ugly pig. 1/10.

Until next time.

Okay, Psycho-Pass 2.

Blah blah blah, undercooked story and elements. Blah blah blah, kinda less bountiful OST and god AWFUL character development.

There is only one true reason why this anime is seen the way it is. It's simply because it's 11 episodes. They only got 11 episodes to work with, so the team crammed as much as they could. While they did succeed to a degree, it wasn't a far reach. Again, only 11 episodes.

No, it's not because Urobutcher Gen wasn't writing this season. While it's one of the main reasons why you wouldn't like it, the ideas they presented were at least interesting in ... concept and presentation. Even if it was ultimately flawed, I can't imagine Urobutcher winning a two-streak for writing a pretty-boy-philosophical-cunning-charismatic-deceptive-playmaker-murderer-terrorist villain that dissects society. It's uh... kinda hard to follow up on that, eh? You have to remember that nobody great will ever be consistent and that's fine because it keeps things interesting.

When people asked for more Psycho-Pass, they knew what they were asking for. They wanted more philosophy, they got more (flawed) philosophy. They wanted more D O M I N A T O R action, they got both an edgy massacre AND a sniper rifle that wall-hacks anyone who does not BELONG to society. They wanted more Kougami and Makishima, they got... a basic but well-implemented villain, a psychotic creep who gets off to wrong anime police vibe checks, a generic pencil-pushing noob, and a degenerate v-tuber reconstructor as a supporting cast. We all knew that the bureau would struggle remaking its ranks, but this was still a little rough.

Admittedly... I too am not the biggest fan of this show nor series. You couldn't exactly blame S2 for existing because S2 was simply "more Psycho-Pass". But I somehow found this to be an enjoyable mixed bag.

I absolutely hated the philosophical ideas of season 2. Philosophy about the collective is whimsical lunacy when sociology is literally right there... but that's just me.

The characters were surprisingly fitting despite how simple they are. The story on the other hand obviously didn't hit the landing at all, but I thought it made a decent effort. It retained the same structure of beats, it had shock value, it had upgrades, and society still sucks!!

Ultimately though, the 11 episodes will feel like a slog if you're looking for some greater enlightenment regardless of this shitty review. The 11 episodes would be sorta entertaining if you like watching the writing take itself seriously and making fun of that.

Is this a recommendation? No. Far from it. I... lowkey dislike Psycho Pass conceptionally...

Anime police vibe checks based on your mood in a totalitarian society... is not exactly good material for introspective societal examinations. It's not to discount S1, because you can at least tell that the world outside of those vibe checks were seriously well constructed and portrayed. The actors in that pitiful world did an immaculate job at challenging it. This was on top of just being an entertaining well-paced show in general.

In conclusion,

Psycho Pass 2... is duller Psycho Pass in every single fashion/sensation/vibe neatly tied up in 11 episodes. Take it or leave it.

But in the end, they couldn't even answer what they asked in the first place. It's for that reason that I'm psycho passing too. 6/10.

Until next time.

Read Ashita no Joe, they said. It's one of those recommendations that say absolutely nothing... And holy shit. Truth be told, this was tougher to read than Berserk.

It certainly doesn't feel that way at first, owing to its classical cartoonish style and setup. You couldn't guess how deep this goes on first glance. On second glance. On third glance, because Joe just keeps going. Because unlike Berserk, which requires a good attachment to the cast in addition to its bountiful artwork, Ashita no Joe does not care about your feelings. It only requires you to keep reading, to keep watching Joe in the same way ... he asks Shiraki Yoko to never turn away from true greatness.

The story kicks off with Joe being a dexterous ruffian. But when he finds himself in juvenile detention, he answers his life's calling to become a boxer. Throughout his journey, he quickly realizes that he is alone in the ring and revels in it. Fight after fight, Joe defies all expectations. The beauty of tomorrow is promising yet ephemeral. Tomorrow will only feature brutal bruises, bloody wounds, and the dust of dust. To everyone else, it is a revolting sight. But to him... That's tomorrow's Joe.

One thing I found very appalling is the sparse development among its well-written characters. Of course, it's not to say that there's a lack thereof, but it's assumed because the manga overall doesn't need it. Most side characters only grow through the passage of time. Joe goes through intense arcs of emotion and isolation, but quickly grows from it and subtly matures into an apex predator, looking forward to yet another tomorrow. He might continue to thrash around like an unhinged monkey, because one can argue that Joe's fists go through more character development than what Joe displays. But deep down he is one of the most mature sportsman you'll ever witness. All it took was a few moments of tenderness, ones that showcased how attuned he is to reality moreso than anyone else in the room. And he's the one taking all of the punches!

My god, dude. From his clash with Rikiishi all the way to the final bout, there's this uncanny hook in this manga that keeps you reading. A significant part of it is due to its simplistic structure and pacing, never dragging on and never a bore. Another significant part is the timeless style this manga is drawn in, giving it quite the unique and fresh vibe even today. And what would the manga be without the titular character himself? What would Joe be without the ego, the triple counter, the tenacity of a god to eat all of those punches? One word. Weak.

So, if you want to set baseline expectations, you should watch Megalobox first. It's a show that's directly inspired by Ashita no Joe, though set in a different universe and much more digestible. Megalobox's characters, premise, and some story beats are vastly similar to Ashita no Joe, though their journeys are wildly different owing to its styles. Megalobox presents boxing as a symphonic spectacle. While Ashita no Joe is basically the same thing, it's much more nuanced than a symphony. It's a deathmatch in hell.

In conclusion,

It's very difficult to describe the entirety of Ashita no Joe in a single word, but I think I can.

Tomorrow's Joe is UNBELIEVABLE. 10/10.

Until next time.

Okay, Blue Lock.

Even though nobody cares about default L opinions, I'm doing myself a favour by typing out my harsh rating here instead of filling out the comment section of the anilist entry. It'd look better anyways.

Looking at Blue Lock holistically, it's a very well-done adaptation. It faithfully follows the beats of the manga, focusing the drawings on high-points and extensively using 3d during its low-points. It's definitely worth noting that this is the most impressive implementation of 3D I've seen thus far.

But the quality of the production... still feels rather cheap and underwhelming. The drawings are well done but aren't dynamic and lack fluidity. ... The effects (in particular, some of the character glows) are even cheaper and you can even see the pixilation in them. And the extensive use of 3D to make up for the lack of moving 2D parts clearly expose the limitations of what the 2-slide-long-powerpoint team could achieve.

So the limitations become the question then. Do you accept a faithful adaptation for a trade of explicit quality?

My answer is no, because having read the manga... my mind will always flock to the manga and none of the moments from the anime. And ultimately, I don't settle for less.

This isn't to disrespect the production team. This is the best lowly B-tier anime that I've seen and sets the bar quite high... in its own weight class.

I can only imagine two scenarios that can explain the quality of this show.

1. The shareholders didn't believe that Blue Lock would take off. Hence, smaller team, lower budget, lower risk.

2. The small team with small budget really wanted to work on Blue Lock, so they went out of their way to secure the contract and le bags.

The thing about this consoomerist era is that very, *very*, VERY high quality stuff is presented to you without any action from the consoomer. It's very cutthroat. Trends move extremely fast and things are so easily forgettable in favour of the next flavour of the month limited edition cute anime twink butt plug.

Therefore, if scenario 1 was true, then the shareholders are to blame for gimping the overall quality of the anime. Case closed. If scenario 2 was true... I would congratulate the team on their success and hope they can expand in the future.

Why would you settle for less in an era where you can always ask for more? There isn't anything wrong with asking for more. You are the target and you can always ask for more. Settling for less... That's a bit weird in an era where past anime can easily outrun the small game anytime, anywhere.

In conclusion,

My recommendation is simple. Completely ignore the anime and read the manga instead. If you can envision a better looking Blue Lock anime that's more dynamic and fluid than the show itself... the anime will feel completely underwhelming in every single regard.

To me, Blue Lock feels like one of the best B-tier anime. Under the hood, it clearly showcases the importance of raw manpower as it defines the limitations of your work. So, if Blue Lock defines the upper limits of a B-tier anime...

... Then the upper limits themselves continue to be quite the disappointment. 3/10.

Until next time.

On April 28 20XX, the CIA formed a joint operation with Tokyo PD to help resolve a kidnapping case. As you'd imagine, if the CIA are involved, this is pretty serious business. See, the victim of the kidnapping case, Maria Osawa, was injected with the Ua virus and was set loose onto the busy streets of Shibuya.

The Ua virus is particularly deadly, causing the victim to violently bleed out of every orifice after 12-24 hours of infection. You can already imagine the means of transmission if the symptoms are *that* horrific. If they did not find Maria Osawa within this timeframe, the streets of Shibuya ... would be painted in red.

That's all in the past though. Of course, the CIA and Tokyo PD would work together to keep this case away from public light. But to those who did know about these events, they would call it the 428 Shibuya Scramble.

428 Shibuya Scramble is a legendary visual novel and is one of the best that you'll ever read. It leaves an everlasting impression with its writing, the presentation, and its characters.

428 Shibuya Scramble was so good and confident that they featured a special scenario from Type-Moon! This scenario would then get a sequel anime, Canaan!

Canaan on the other hand... isn't good. And I never bothered to compare it to its predecessor. Even though Type-Moon can shit out a well-produced anime, sometimes the shit flies all over the toilet seat. Such is the case with Canaan.

The biggest issue I have with Canaan is that it's simply too campy. It's an anime that's blissfully ignorant, lollygagging along the ghettos of Shanghai while dragging you along for uninteresting ride.

The story revolves around Canaan and Maria Osawa, but you don't need the visual novel pretext. You're not expected to know it either. Cool! What's not cool is literally everything else.

Type-Moon is the only studio to place serious plot points near armpits and butts. They're the only studio to show a no-name idol singing at an Anti-Terrorist Convention that gets taken over by terrorists. All of this feels very loosely written. The lack of cohesion and overload of camp proves that a coherent story isn't a priority. And I didn't mind this, as I have 0 expectations for anything.

For 12 episodes you are thrown through a cat and mouse charade, which is uninteresting because all Type-Moon did was flex their choreography.

Oh, sure. Type-Moon does what they do best, I suppose. In Canaan's case the action still feels lacking because fancy anime military backflips are innately less interesting than an overflow of shiny particle effects. But despite the criticisms, it was still entertaining to watch the eye-candy-laced scenarios unfold.

The characters on the other hand are not interesting. They look strong but end up degrading themselves as all characters search for and display the basic principles of a good anime human. The fact that it isn't grounded in any capacity makes me feel like I'm drowning in this bottomless pool of sentimentality rather than wanting to coddle these cold-blooded apex predators.

In the end, much like the visual novel, the taxi driver is my highlight of the show. Even when he's subjected to anime bullshit, he'll laugh, brush it off, and still give you a ride to the strip club the very next day.

On the other end, I was very disappointed to see the main villain, Alphard, degrade beyond recognition. When subjected to anime bullshit, she quite literally falls off in such a way that nobody could've predicted. She acted crazy cool, but was penultimately weak. Fallen from grace. Truly unbefitting of the mastermind known as Alphard.

And Canaan... ugh. For a show to be THIS centered around her... UGH. 12 episodes to show that stoic apex predators can smile too. There's not much to be said about her since Canaan is a simple girl. The show goes out of its way to reinforce that idea and it wasn't interesting because for 11 episodes she didn't display any hint of any meaningful character development.

In conclusion,

Just another day of cute anime girls smiling, terrorism, and unimportant plot twists in favour of campy feels. There's nothing wrong with any of this, but that toilet seat still needs cleaning. So get to it. 4/10.

Until next time.

If you wanted free criticism on a highly acclaimed artist, look no further than Buzzer Beater (1996-1998).

Buzzer Beater is Takehiko Inoue's 3rd work, following Slam Dunk (1990-1996) and Chameleon Jail (1989-1990). It tells a story about some homeless NYC brat gunning his way through the intergalactic B-ball league for some insane amount of dosh.

It sounds cool in theory and I would imagine that you'd be able to find a way to enjoy it. No problems there.

The real problem with this manga is just how disjointed everything is. From the artwork to the story, all of it lacks any sense of cohesion. It's an intergalactic abject ... failure.

Let's start with the unimaginative artwork. It's basically more drawing practice for Inoue without the brevity of the linework. In place of the linework is a fully coloured manga, which also sounds cool but lacks the depth from his previous works. The colours felt flat in comparison to the highly detailed panels of his previous works. When Chameleon Jail can look more detailed and stylized in comparison, Buzzer Beater feels like a colouring book.

The story is an incredible mess. You're left with more questions than answers. Even though manga ran for 4 volumes, Inoue still felt the need to be completely serious with this. As serious as Slam Dunk or Vagabond. But not Real, because Buzzer Beater doesn't challenge the human condition.

Basically, Buzzer Beater is Discount Slam Dunk Lite. The homeless NYC brat is the underdog, and his quest is to represent humanity in the intergalactic B-ball league. He magically qualifies, goes through a training arc, and then plays some B-ball. The B-ball happens with hints of weird alien gender identity and questions of character motivation, but that's it. That's the end.

None of the critical questions it asked amounted to anything because of the lack of flesh. The ending amounted to nothing, since the plot twist of the manga is the brat being an alien. And in a story where humanity was trying to prove itself, having an alien singlehandedly cheat the system AND carry the team in OT... what the fuck is this? He undermined the premise and potential of the story by becoming an icon for aspiring humans! That's promoting fraud my guy!!! How creatively bankrupt.

Not only that, the intergalactic B-ball premise isn't finessed in the art style nor story. At first you're lead through some abstract representation of B-ball tryouts, but then things quickly degrade back to realistic depictions of B-ball, court and everything. The most alien things get are basic humanoid with horns. More specifically, the shape of generic horns, generic male body, no hair, and the horns have the same skin texture connected to the rest of the bod. Plain. Unexciting. No mega alien with 6 arms, no 6-legged mega alien, just an unimaginative generic "male" alien.

The other alien that has weird gender vibes is simply a generic male body with longer limbs and duck lips. But then she suddenly screams "I'm a girl!" and then proceeds to explain how she wants to sex everybody in the arena for the rest of the chapter?!?! Make of that what you will. I'm not even going to bother.

You are shown a spaceship only once and the ending shot is one of a clear blue sky. So yeah.

Intergalactic abject failure.

If I had a single criticism for Takehiko Inoue, it'd be that he cannot write good, satisfactory, interesting endings. Buzzer Beater is the worst case so far. Chameleon Jail doesn't count, because Chameleon Jail. In Slam Dunk, it understandably ended with a tonal whiplash. Vagabond is on hiatus until Inoue figures out an ending, and Real?

At the time of writing, the problem with Real's story is that it has no creative direction. Of course, I could easily be refuted much later down the line. But would the ending be good, satisfactory, and interesting? I'm not convinced it would. Not yet, anyways.

But it's not like this criticism matters, right? I'm sure Inoue is at least having fun producing this stuff. Why bother tying things up with neat bowties when you're already that successful? Well... I just want things to be as artistic as they can be. But that's just me.

In conclusion,

Buzzer Beater is an unforgettable and painful sting. It has the potential to highlight an artist's inherent foundational flaw. That's something nobody wants. Most certainly not the artist, nor its fans. 1/10.

Until next time.

I'm genuinely shocked. I can't believe that they made a more powerful follow-up to a POTTERY ANIME of all things.

As the perilous artist's journey continues, it doesn't make for an explosive innovative entrance. Unless you consider the VAs getting in the POTTERY ANIME BRANDED GOVERNMENT VAN to be innovative, I guess you can call it a default 10/10 :3

Nay, Let's Make a Mug Too! S2 (henceforth Yakumo S2) continues the artist's journey. If you have no idea what that looks like, allow me to present a crude 3-step method of how to get into professional art:

1. Develop interest and passion for your medium.
2. Get good.
3. ... Enjoy the craft as you're a true professional.

Yakumo S2 focuses on steps 2 and 3 because Himeno isn't the central focus of the story this time. It focuses on the motivations for the main cast. From dealing with circumstantial setbacks (Mika) to upholding family legacies (Touko-senpai), the cast of characters discover the true meaning of pottery... Something that I couldn't be fucked to tell you what that actually means lol.

Honestly, I felt like that point was just to generate faux depth for the story. From what I could gleam into, the essence of pottery is no different than the rest of the crafts like painting or even drawing anime frames. It's just the methodology (hands-on vs using a pencil vs using CG for anime) that's different.

But that's okay, this IS a show designed to be light-hearted and easily digestible from the ground up. Even though the character development can seem like a mega-miss because of how short-lived it really is, the themes and overall development are perfect for the half-length episodes. The show gets their points across with a clean cut every time.

And golly gee, Jim. The story does feel excellent as always. Through the expressions of the characters and what they make, you can feel that sense of progression happening between seasons, even if it isn't explicitly shown.

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"But what about the specials, Mr. Chips901? It was the only reason why you rated S1 so high! Is it the same this time around?"

Why yes, wayward reader. I'm so glad you asked.

Yes, the specials take it a step further, ranging from appreciating history to the VAs making a piece of pottery that they can feel proud of.

One immediate difference I noticed was the dichotomy of appreciation from people who regularly watch anime vs the town of Tajimi. As mentioned above, the town REALLY liked Yakumo for how well produced and faithful it is. Not only do they have an anime branded government car, they also went as far as to say that the town would showcase some of the pieces that the VAs made! Needless to say, it startled VAs for just how good of a job they did. In contrast, both AniList and MAL rate this show as a mid-to-high 6, meaning that the casual audience probably expected someone to die.

On the history side, all I can say is that for someone to be designated as a Living Treasure, you would have to stand at the very apex of the craft itself. Like, they talk about one ancient gigachad who singlehandedly recreated an ancient pottery style FROM A SINGLE FORGOTTEN SHARD. It's a feat that's more impressive than whatever I'll be able to accomplish in my weak bloodline...

On the side of VAs producing a pottery piece, that's where things get a bit more interesting.

How do you judge amateur work? Well, you'd judge by what you can see. But if that's all you can see, then that's a pretty shallow and casual take on it. Professionals take it a step further by judging the shape of the idea itself, being able to see the underlying potential in one's work.

This doesn't apply too much to Yakumo, since the VAs received professional help in realizing the end result, but hey. Y'know what they say, it's the thought that counts!

For the most part, the VAs made an earnest effort to create something memorable. To that extent, at the advice of the expert helping them, they created something related to their interests. While two of the VAs' creations were simple and clear, one VA tried to make something abstract, and the other... A butt with T H I C C legs and heels.

I shit you not. That VA said something like "I didn't like how [the butt piece] turned out. The butt ended up being more masculine and thicc in nature," despite receiving professional help with shaping such a piece. It was at that point that I knew Yakumo S2 was a 10/10.

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Sometimes, you just gotta take a step back and enjoy the little things. When you're drinking something delightful out of something handmade, there's something inexplicably special about it. Yakumo S2 successfully captures this, even if melodramatic for what it is. Pottery itself still continues to not be intrinsically exciting, but as stated in my previous review, it's all about having fun with the creative process.

Yakumo S2 gets a 10/10 simply because they did an excellent job at showcasing what they wanted to showcase, be it the continuation of an artist's journey or the butt. They did such a good job that creating a competing pottery anime of the same calibre would be very VERY difficult. It's one of those cases where less ends up being a lot more.

Should you watch Yakumo S2? Obviously, my answer is a resounding yes, both anime and specials. As usual, if you're just grinding anime for the sake of completion, you'd only disappoint yourself as you can only see this as a write-off. On the flipside, it is more pottery and then some. It is the pursuit of inspiration itself.

For me, I'll always look back on this anime with a peculiar brand of fondness. It'll always bring a smile to my face no matter how hard I critically think about it. If a colourful anime mug can be that evocative, how could this show be any less than a masterpiece?

In conclusion,

Yeah! Let's make a mug too! 10/10.

Until next time.

Let's Make a Mug Too is one of the more underappreciated and underestimated animes because... well, it's pottery. It's not Berserk.

Much like any other craft like drawing or painting, the underlying process behind such crafts are often tedious, underwhelming through intense self-scrutiny, and often-times boring to the outside observer. In other words, the uninitiated would only be able to appreciate the end result of fine art.

Let's Make a Mug Too is about the beginning of an artist's journey, and it's a pretty damn good representation of it! It comes in two parts - half anime and half special.

Let's start off with the specials, which are ... the reason why this show gets a high rating. In it, the VAs go on a field trip to Tajimi and have the opportunity to make a mug and more! They also participate in its culture, eating local specialities as well as checking out some neat spots that really makes you FEEL like you're in Tajimi! The specials are able to convey the brevity of the craft, something the anime couldn't because y'know.. beautifully drawn anime mugs - while colourful - can't convey the real thing.

The light-hearted story follows Himeno Toyokawa as she begins her pottery journey. Throughout the season, she goes through the highs and lows commonly found in an artist's journey. As a rookie, she explores the craft. But as she becomes more serious, the frustrations of a rookie begin to catch up with her. What's important to recognize is that this show isn't aiming for excitement. While the show could be pretty exciting if it had SHOKUGEKI-style battles between high-schools over which mug is more colourful, it wouldn't fit in with the spirit of pottery.

The process of pottery is tedious, more nerve-racking than drawing because the kiln can waste your time and materials if done improperly, and requires laser-focus to produce results. As a result, pottery competitions are as exciting as it can get, and it can be pretty interesting to see what people can produce with ceramics! The show does an excellent job at showing creativity and (sometimes) technicalities, whether it'd be the history of Tajimi or pottery contests itself.

That's to say that if you find this sort of stuff thought-provoking in a creative sense, you have the right mindset to appreciate this show in its entirety - you'd be able to appreciate the process AND whatever result the artist produces.

And I do. Or, at least I think I do. I'm trying to get into drawing myself and I'm seeing the exact highs and lows of the artist's journey here, B-tier life drama and everything. Whether or not I succeed is entirely up to me, much like how Himeno's journey is entirely up to her. As long as the artist is having fun with the creative process... who the fuck cares!

In conclusion,

Let's Make a Mug Too is a very light-hearted, easily digestible anime for the mature and the mature alone. If you treat it like a write-off, then a write-off it shall be. If you treat it like an artist's journey and the exploration of the craft as a whole (both anime and specials), you sorely won't be disappointed. 9/10

Until next time.