This series was great. I would have loved more of it, but I am also not terribly sad about it ending here either. They did a good job wrapping up the story and gave us some great Tanya and Laplace moments.
I still occasionally mess up when I go to say the year by starting with "two thousand and..." instead of "twenty-...". Sometimes it feels like I woke up one day and twenty years went by, so I get it.
It is excellent. Some of my favorite parts of the film were the montages where they really just let the OST rip at full volume. The movie is wonderfully atmospheric at times like that.
Color Change is excellent, I just wish it updated more often. I basically have to reread the whole thing whenever a new chapter comes out.
I also ran across Makina Mama in the recent updates page. It has been very silly and the short chapters make it easy to knock out in just a couple minutes.
This past week has been a lot of catching up on backlog. There are a couple series I caught up on that I wanted to mention:
- Class no Bocchi Gal wo Omochikaeri Shite Seisokei Bijin ni Shite Yatta Hanashi - A Story Of Taking Home A Lonely Gal From My Class And Turning Her Into An Elegant Beauty
This story has been better than I thought it would be based on the premise. Basically, the MC sees a classmate that is essentially homeless and offers to let her stay at his place. The series then goes through all the ways that the MC and friends try to improve the image of this girl. Think things like makeover, study sessions, social activities, etc. I think the thing that has kept me hooked so far is that everything is being done on a timeline. The MC is moving away at the end of the current term, so their goal is to get this girl self sufficient prior to his leaving. Anyway, I have enjoyed it in a guilty pleasure kind of way, so thought I would share.
- Dainana Maouji Zilbagias no Maou Keikokuki - Zilbagias the Demon Prince: How the Seventh Prince Brought Down the Kingdom
This one is a fantasy/reincarnation story about a human hero that ends up getting reincarnated as the seventh demon prince. He then vows to carry out his role of killing the demon lord from within the ranks of the demon army. It has been interesting, but I am not sure I will stick with it. The thing that kind of kept me going with this series was the magic system. The MC makes a pact with essentially the God of Taboo. So, the more taboos he breaks, the more powerful he can become. The biggest taboo of all, of course, would be betraying his (current) people and family and killing the demon lord. The story has been pretty slow though, so I had let some chapters pile up, but I just binged them to get caught up and it is still kind of slow.
I think I mentioned this one before, but I have been enjoying it lately. The main couple is pretty cute and the guy isn't a complete idiot (though the girl can be). Also, it is about college students (specifically law students) instead of another high school setting, so that is nice. Also, there are heavy elements of livestreaming and the parasocial relationships that get formed between streamer and viewer that complicate the relationship. It's fun!
This past weekend, I was able to attend another showing of a Ghibli movie in my local theater as part of Ghibli Fest happening this year. This time, it was Princess Mononoke. Due to my schedule, I was attending on a day where the English dub was screening.
One thing that really struck me watching it on the big screen was the soundtrack. It had been years since I last watched Mononoke, and even then, I had watched it at a Ghibli themed party that was full of other people milling about, chatting, eating, etc. So, the soundtrack was not really shown in the best light at my previous viewing. This time though, the soundtrack was really great and was definitely the most impactful thing on me from watching it on the big screen.
Another thing I noticed this time was how much effort went into animating some of the sequences. I can't even imagine all the work put into animating all the little squiggly, wormy bits of the demons, or how much effort went into animating the transparency portions of the forest spirit.
Something I had a question about when I left the theater was the importance of the crystal dagger. I talked to a friend afterwards and did a little research and found out that the crystal daggers symbolism was impacted by the localization from Japanese to English. Story spoiler below for more:
Crystal Dagger Changes
I have only ever seen the dub for this movie (that I can remember), so I only ever knew the character that gives Ashitaka the crystal dagger, Kaya, as his sister. However, Kaya's relationship to Ashitaka in the original Japanese was that of a betrothed. When localizing to English, Disney changed it to sister instead. I guess arranged marriages between kids were a step too far for them.
Anyway, so the crystal dagger is really something like a wedding ring. So, when Ashitaka makes sure that San gets the dagger, it is essentially a proposal. The fact that the dagger is the thing that he sees when he is trying to rescue her is symbolic that their love is what is pulling them through the darkness.
Overall, it was a great experience. I don't know what the next movie in the list I will be able to do (I think probably Kiki, but it isn't set in stone yet).
Weekly ranking roundup:
- Anime Corner - Full Results - Weekly Winner: Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian
- Reddit Karma - Weekly Winner: My Deer Friend Nokotan
- Anime Trending - Weekly Winner: Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian
Credit to /u/Abysswatcherbel for making the chart for reddit karma and /u/Nooble5 for the Anime Trending chart.
The brain rot has set in over on reddit as Nokotan finds her way to the top of the chart. Elsewhere, Alya manages to hold onto the top spot. Alya has been a bit of a surprise for me this season, so we'll see if she is able to maintain as we go.
the last time I did a PR, it didn’t end very well
Oh no! The memories all came rushing back!
Looking at the totals, Oshi no Ko is really in a league of its own with ~100,000 more than second place (Alya). It's a similar story on the JP Twitter side with the one exception of MHA which is an outlier by any definition.
If somebody wants to take the lead on this, I am more than happy to pin a thread about it.
Aaaand...added to the list to check out. Thanks!
23
Top 10 Anime of the Week #02 - Summer 2024 (Anime Corner)
(static.animecorner.me)
47
"I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level" Season 2 Updated Key Visual, New PV
(ogre.natalie.mu)
Premieres sometime in 2025. The new PV is here. Check out the ANN article for additional information. Source novel synopsis from AniList:
After living a painful life as an office worker, Azusa ended her short life by dying from overworking. So when she found herself reincarnated as an undying, unaging witch in a new world, she vows to spend her days stress free and as pleasantly as possible. She ekes out a living by hunting down the easiest targets - the slimes! But after centuries of doing this simple job, she's ended up with insane powers...how will she maintain her low key life now?!
14
"Rent-A-Girlfriend" Season 4 Announced
(www.animenewsnetwork.com)
Premieres sometime in 2025. There is a teaser PV here as well as an announcement visual (bottom of this post). Synopsis of the source manga from AniList:
In today’s Japan, “rental” services can deliver an afternoon with a “friend,” a “parent,” even a fake girlfriend! After a staggering betrayal by his girlfriend, hapless freshman Kazuya gets just desperate enough to give it a try. But he quickly discovers how complicated it can be to “rent” an emotional connection, and his new “girlfriend,” who’s trying to keep her side hustle secret, will panic when she finds out her real life and Kazuya’s are intertwined in surprising ways! Family, school, and life all start to go wrong, too… It’s sweet but naïve boy meets cute but ruthless girl in this 21st-century manga rom-com!
Announcement visual:
20
"Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms" New Visual, PV
(ogre.natalie.mu)
Premieres sometime in 2025. The new PV is here along with a newly released character video here. Check out the ANN article for additional information. Synopsis from AniList:
Mona is the cutest girl in school, and she knows it. In fact, she's worked hard to make her high school debut successful. But no matter what she does, she can't seem to catch the eye of stone-cold stoic Medaka Kuroiwa—but she's not about to give up that easy. Medaka, on the other hand, has been raised at a temple and was told to never become close to women. Who will win in this heated battle of wills?
16
"Puniru is a Cute Slime" New Teaser Visual, PV
(ogre.natalie.mu)
Premieres October 2024. The new PV is here. Check out the ANN article for additional cast/staff information. Synopsis from AniList:
The slime created by the boy Kotarou can transform into a super beautiful girl! Kotarou is constantly getting pushed around by Puniru's freewheeling antics. It's a joyful and exciting life every day!
view more: next ›
Just saw over on reddit that the translator that had been working on Obokoi Majo wa Majiwaritai! (The Young Witch Wants To Have Sex?!) stopped. I am hoping somebody else picks it up because it was a really wholesome series, despite the name, that I had been enjoying a lot.