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Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? is hilarious. Forty kilograms worth of hilarious.

Since the pilot episode, one could easily tell that Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? is playing with exaggerated campiness and over-the-top outrageousness. A bunch of high school girls' journey in achieving the prime body strength (and ecchi-level sexiness) is bound to be both head-scratching and downright relatable. However, thanks to its mascot character Machio-san and the exemplary straight-man Tachibana-sensei, every minute of these twelve episodes is spent with such productive ways that are both indulging one's muscles and churning the audience's stomach. Nonetheless, what truly brings this anime to a weight class of its own is ... when Kutaro Deire the Director is introduced. As if being the personification of the actual real world, this odd-man-out supporting character always finds himself in loop of confusion over "how come strength training is interesting? especially for young girls and women?" and boy, do the Silverman Girls always give him the craziest answers! (a hint: the answer contains a deadlift exercise and wrestler's bridge)

Ultimately, Summer 2019 has been truly packed with some of the most interesting anime-- ranging from the enthralling Dr. Stone to the jaw-dropping Araburu Kisetsu. Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? may not be the Number One Anime of this season but boy, one cannot help but try twenty seconds of pushups every morning once Fall 2019 kicks off.

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Emiya-san Chi no Kyou no Gohan is a pretty creative spin-off for the Fate/stay night saga and it truly is the opposite of what the saga would usually offer. It is comparatively shorter, milder, with lots of food and sadly, not much weight.

First of all, it is refreshing to see Emiya-san, Saber, and the entire gang in the setting of which everything is peaceful and everyone could tie up a perfect, humdrum day with homemade, heartwarming dishes-- which is exactly the point of this particular spinoff. Instead of presenting new plots or providing different perspectives towards Fate/stay night saga, Emiya-san Chi no Kyou no Gohan ... simply wishes to create this psychedelic atmosphere under which peaceful days are here to stay and ultimately, the key ingredient for maintaining peace is the dishes masterfully fetched by Emiya-san. A teenage boy who can cook karaage like a boss-- who doesn't love that?

Nonetheless, there is usually a problem when a well-known fantasy saga switches gears and spawns a slice-of-life subsidiary. Emiya-san Chi no Kyou no Gohan is a pretty wonderful treat but it does not feel cohesive to the rest of its anime brothers and sisters. Ultimately, it is hard to take this spin-off seriously. The entire twelve episodes feel very dreamy to the point of which, perhaps this whole spin-off is a dream all along.

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Locodol is a pleasant anime. It feels like a breeze of morning air and just like actual morning breeze itself, it passes too easily.

The premise is a bit refreshing compared to most Idol girls out there. Nakaregawa Girls is an idol unit commissioned by the local government of Nakaregawa for the purpose of which to promote the best offerings of the locals. Simply put, these girls must attract the masses without the glitz and the sparkles nationwide idols usually have. The twist here, however, is that what ultimately drives Nakaregawa Girls is not the love for singing or chasing girlhood dreams, but simply showing the ... whole world what Nakaregawa is made of. With such setting, it truly is a delight watching a heroine that is clumsy by nature but never losing her wit once the situation demands it (after all, local idols require mastering the skills of hustling instead of singing and dancing). Moreover, the audience can actually envision such scenario to occur in real life. When Nakaregawa Girls is tasked to report termite extermination, you bet that it is a realistically embarrassing yet hilarious gig, indeed.

That being said, there is always this lingering feeling that something is missing from this anime. Locodol is funny but not hilarious, cute but not adorable, admirable but not inspiring. Lack of commitment in the execution makes Locodol barely pass the passing grade. Last but not least, by the end of the series, the audience does not necessarily feel the urge to look up 'Nakaregawa' on the net-- an urge that had proven to be no issue for local-oriented anime such as Sakura Quest or (if we can point out the most obvious example) Kimi No Na Wa.

Just like Nakaragewa Girls, at least this anime does its job. The quality of the job, though, is another story.

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Gabriel DropOut: a moe anime in which the supporting characters outshine (and outcute) the primary protagonist.

The premise is exactly what one would expect from something titled "Gabriel DropOut": about an angel named Gabriel who decided to become a total bum on Earth thanks to serious addiction for MMORPG. Splashed with moe tones and lots of colors, the audience soon finds a hilarious setting where angels and demons being all cute and funny while at the same time, poking serious topics on morality and comformity. Nonetheless, it is still a moe anime which also means that being entertaining must be Gabriel DropOut's number one priority. Unfortunately, ... the Gabriel in question literally only possesses the cute face. Even with equipment such as angelic wings and sneaky wit, Gabriel can't help but come off as one-note-- which is a big No-No for a main heroine whose name even serves as the half of the series title. Making things 'worse', the cuteness factors are more bombastic when Satanichia and Vignette come into the picture.

As a foil for Gabriel, Satanichia mainly serves as a comic relief but thanks to such committed depiction, Satanichia never comes off as a clown and in fact, just the opposite: the episode gets easily tedious when Satanichia is nowhere to be found. Vignette --who is basically an Angel stuck in a Demon skin for some reason-- is more interesting in her quest of her "good girl being better". It is as if these two were there to give Gabriel and Raphiel something to do. However, the two angels would finally get the character depiction they deserved-- but only on the second OVA episode! And such 16-minute OVA episode happens to be the best of the entire saga! It truly is a divine travesty.

In conclusion, Gabriel DropOut is pretty amusing for all the wrong reasons. It is still a must-watch, but perhaps the creatives at Dogo Kobo had better off not considering a second season but instead, considering a spin-off for a certain character.

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I decided to grade each and every scoring board a hard 10 because there is no f*cking way Shounen Hollywood: Holly Stage for 49 only scored an average lame 6.14.

Thanks to the popular notion regarding Idol-genre anime, both the studios and the audience always imagine such anime as flashy, colorful, packed with smokes and mirrors, and last but not least: easily digestible. For decades now, Idol anime is seen as a strawberry parfait of anime industry. Each season will always offer at least two or three Idol anime and they all seem to serve as a complementary dessert accompanying the main dishes such as Shounen-battle ... anime or formulaic Shoujo saga. Shounen Hollywood tried to be more than just a strawberry parfait. Unfortunately for the classicists out there, there is neither flashiness or smokes or mirrors in this anime. Shounen Hollywood focuses on only one thing: the trials and tribulations of being an idol in real life. Yes, the last two words may have already turned off the readers of this review.

Serving as the center of gravity is Kazami Kakeru, who accepts the offer of being an idol (or an ideal trainee, at the beginning) on a whim. In his core, he is a blank canvas who, as he dives deeper into the idol-hood, encounters more questions than answers. In fact, the whole five personnel encounter questions of their own as they deal with debuts, expectations, fame, disappointment, and (I'm not kidding) existential crisis. As this anime reaches it climax, the audience is served a flinching possibility of these idols most likely on the brink of failure. More often than not, IRL idol must gamble too much for rewards that are simply too little. Why are they still fighting their best to be an idol, then? Well, the season finale may not give the audience the solid answer but my gosh, these aspiring idols are very solid in their determination.

Personally, I get it-- very few people enjoy anime that offer more talking and less acting. Nonetheless, do not count Shounen Hollywood out just yet. Life is more than just about singing and dancing, and Shounen Hollywood totally nailed it.

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Netjuu no Susume a.k.a Recovery of an MMO Junkie-- an anime that recovers the protagonist but unfortunately, not the audience.

The premise should be pretty relatable for otaku out there, especially the ones swimming in the sea of adulthood. Morioka Moriko is a self-described "elite NEET" as it is her choice to quit her job (and the real world altogether) and establish a brand new existence in an MMO realm named "Fruits de Mer". Unexpectedly, though, soon she finds it really hard to completely escape reality as more often than not, real world can be more surprising and adventurous than the made-up one. Obviously, looking at ... the premise, this anime may be too difficult to enjoy for kids and pre-teens. However, for the older ones, Netjuu no Susume is probably the long-awaited mint syrup for the soul.

Here we could feel exactly what Moriko is going through. Her deconstruction from being a functioning adult-slash-office worker into being a socially-handicapped shut-in is depicted without exaggeration or mockery. Moriko is perhaps the finest anti-heroine we have seen for quite some time now. We as audience root for her to recover from her slumps, to the point of which it is only sensible to have a finale blessed with happy endings and new beginnings. However, is such recovery the best for Moriko? And more importantly, the audience?

I dare to argue that the last three episodes are such whimpers compared to the majestic first seven. Since Episode 8, it has started to seem like our protagonist will find her place in real world again and up to the finale, there is no more depth or wisdom left to explore. There is this lingering feeling that no matter what, such happy ending must occur-- and that is slowly becoming disconcerting. Of course, there is always that classic expression saying "all's well that ends well" but for a human being going through such deep disillusion and disappointment to the point of which nonexistence is a voluntary decision, wouldn't it be better for Moriko (and the audience) to learn a thing or two by the end of the journey? Yes, Moriko can still find happiness again but is happiness the only thing that she needs to pursue? What about inner strength? What about discovering what one truly wants in real life? Why does it feel like everyone --including Moriko and Sakurai and Signal.MD studio-- forgets why this MMO junkie is an MMO junkie in the first place?

Ultimately, a simple bow-tie ending can only serve as an evening medicine. This anime is still recommended for otaku out there and this anime is still a pretty accurate depiction of modern depression. However, it is best to deem this anime as 'relatable', and not 'therapeutical'.

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While Kimi no Na Wa. felt like Makoto Shinkai proving himself to the world, Tenki no Ko feels like the auteur simply being himself-- because it's time for the world to get to know him.

Tenki no Ko, in its essence, is an urban story. Here we have two teenagers (and one precocious tween) trying to navigate the cold and damp everyday life that is Tokyo by literally sweeping off the cold and the damp. Blessed with the ability to control weather, Hina (the heroine) believes that she can catch two birds with one stone and as her loyal friend/quasi-business manager, Hodaka (the hero) only wishes ... for just enough money and reason for the two of them to stay together no matter what kind of storm that awaits. Predictably, not everything will go along smoothly and the storm in question may not be as on-the-nose as anyone (even the audience) can predict. However, it seems like that is exactly the narrative and the style that suit Makoto Shinkai the most.

His prior work --the forever celebrated Kimi no Na Wa.-- was a spectacular gem. However, what made that work spectacular was the fact of which it stayed true to its identity which was an anime. One couldn't help but notice the whole execution of Kimi no Na Wa. still revolved around that one-century-old formula. For Tenki no Ko, though, there is always this nuance of which the audience is missing something that may be of miniscule, but just as important. Using the layman term, for the first time ever, with this work Makoto Shinkai asks the audience to think-- especially how the overall narrative finally ends. No more blatant showstoppers and no more straightforward life lessons, either. While Kimi no Na Wa is about finding each other, these kids in Tenki No Ko are a bit smarter than that. It is not about seeking something new as it is more about protecting what is already here-- and the latter is always a more engrossing drama.

Ultimately, most otaku would definitely find Tenki No Ko as quote-en-quote 'divisive' but that may not be the case for the rest of (normie) audience. This is a work of a confident artist who had reached the top of the mountain and with Tenki no Ko, we got the answer whether he spent his time on the top by dancing and taking chances or simply putting up fences and playing it safe. Also, it is still too soon to judge either Kimi no Na Wa. or Tenki no Ko as Shinkai's magnum opus. After all, he's just getting started. We are still in the calm before the perfect storm, as it turns out.

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An anime about what it means to be invisible-- which leads to well-earned tears and beautiful discovery.

It feels like a travesty just even bringing up the fact of which Sakura Quest is one of the most (if not THE MOST) underrated creations out there as it feels like describing something that really is not what it is. However, it is better to dissect Sakura Quest not as a hidden gem but as a piece of narrative dealing with a relatively uncharted subject matter. The whole narrative revolves around a college fresh graduate named Koharu Yoshino who just can't score any first paying job at all. ... It does not mean that she has no potential (or even worth) as a future member of the workforce-- she just can't help but slip under the radar (even with that pink hair of hers). One day, out of desperation and failure to read the fine line, she becomes a tourist ambassador for a rural area named Manoyama-- which is neither a traditional village (they have Internet there) nor is it a utopia (the shopping district is basically a Zombie Shibuya). It is soon palpable that the lost girl and Manoyama have one thing in common: both are dealing with being invisible-- and that's where things get very fascinating.

Yes, being invisible sometimes sucks but nothing is ever straightforward-- especially when it comes to human being. Some Manoyama locals actually don't mind being invisible because they have understood all too well the price it pays to be under the spotlight. While there are locals that are still optimistic and would like to shine a light on their hometown and all of its hidden glory, Manoyama is too colorful to finally agree on one unifying sentiment. However, with Koharu and her 'royal ministers', each difference is tackled, each doubt is confronted, and each struggle is worth enduring. Not every plan shall work out but at least someone is there and cares enough to come up with a plan.

Even though it seems similar, Sakura Quest is not in the same group as rural-flavored anime such as Barakamon or Non Non Biyori. From the get-go, Manoyama is not exactly a fairy tale palace and regardless of the historical values and enchanting nature, there are plenty of others like that across Japan. So what is it then that makes something that is usually invisible become, well, visible? Sakura Quest cannot promise the audience the answer but gosh, it is truly a question worth finding answer for.

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Joshiraku is not a perfect anime. If that is the case, then, why the hell did I grade it a Masterpiece 10? Because just like rakugo itself, Joshiraku is surprisingly hilarious.

This anime does not try to challenge what it means to be a comedy-- it simply reintroduces the old ways of doing comedy and proves its mind-blowing relevancy within the landscape that is Twenty-First Century. Each episode comprises of three sub-parts: the first is all five so-called Rakugo Girls simply hanging out in a dressing room and discussing the weirdest topic, the second is the Rakugo Girls sightseeing and clamoring the weird trivia surrounding each ... location, and the third is really just the repeat of the first sub-part. With this formula, this anime shouldn't have worked-- yet it did in a very splendid fashion. Why is that?

After numerous re-watching sessions, it can finally be deduced that Joshiraku is actually the art of rakugo but with more proactive (literally proactive) execution. Rakugo may be an unfamiliar world for most people but dissecting it further, rakugo is just another form of observation comedy. With different method of being funny, though, there comes a different perspective that makes what is old and overused seem fresh and brand new. The strongest element of Joshiraku is how each Rakugo Girl delivers a very different observational comedy and once they come together, it becomes the unlikeliest puzzle pieces that fit with one another. What lacks in story, the geniuses at J.C.Staff made up for it with characters and what lacks in characters, they made up for it with outrageous observational perspectives. This is something that is difficult to pull off for even a live-action fixture, let alone 2-D.

It is unfortunate, though, knowing that a beautiful gem such as this has yet to enjoy the highest credit and popularity it actually deserves. However, words are powerful and just like the art of rakugo itself, this one requires a major preservation stat!

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For those of you who enjoy soccer but find Captain Tsubasa/Whistle!/Area no Kishi too... uhm, 'overwhelming', I suggest never give up. There is DAYS to fulfill your palate.

It is always empowering to see a novice make his or her way up to the top of the league and our hero, Tsukamoto Tsukushi, is doing just that. However, what makes him stand out from the crowd packed with inspirational heroes of the past is the motive that drives him. Tsukushi plays soccer because his first ever male friend once asked him to be a substitute player and as it turned out, he enjoyed it. No deep ... motivation and no pretentiousness, either. Growing up with way too much humility, Tsukushi has no ambitious bone inside him and finally, he doesn't care whether he can be the top scorer or not-- he literally just enjoys running on the field and he wouldn't ask for more. But of course, leave it to your new pals to give you the push you need to take it to the next level.

What is amazing about DAYS is that it is never about talent or gravity-defying kicks. DAYS, with proper amount of 24 episodes as one cour, teaches the audience that at the end of the day, it is all about whether you enjoy what you do or not-- and this message resonates louder for grueling sports such as soccer. Sometimes the role is not 'the role you were born to play', but just any role you can find for yourself and more often than not, it is enough. It is not to say that Tsukushi is a peevish benchwarmer, either. One of the most surprising moments comes during the second half of the cour, in which Tsukushi is not afraid to say what is on his mind and teaches his beloved team that opposition does not necessarily mean hatred-- but actually, love.

Ultimately, DAYS is touching but not at all perfect. Tsukushi is such a compelling character, he makes almost the rest of the characters (even including his wingman Kazama Jin and the over-qualified manager Ubukata) seem unimpressive. Such can be the case for anime that is more character-driven than action-driven. Just like soccer itself, one cannot possibly win at everything as compromise, more often than not, is necessary-- and Tsukushi teaches us just that.

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