Hey guys and girls and everyone else! Welcome. Although it's only been a week or two since my last update, the most recent post was written well in advance and scheduled ahead of time. So, I haven't typed any new blog content in about a month. But now, I'm back, and it's time for more anime rants! This blog series covers episode reviews of selected anime series from this year (2022), as well as one anime from the previous year (Shadows House from 2021). Some of the series were from winter, some from spring, and some from summer. I haven't looked into any Fall anime yet. Anyway, let's review these anime episodes!
Note: This post was supposed to come out on Sep 25th. I'm just publishing it now because I fell behind on blogging.
Shadows House: Season 1 Episode 5
Episode 5 was ridiculously intense, and I loved it. Well, most of it. I didn't enjoy watching Mia get beaten by her Shadow, Sarah. That was by far the most brutal and visceral action we've seen in the series up to this point. Although, to be honest, I was expecting that since I saw her scars in the last episode. Another thing that was hard to watch was how the dolls who actually think are mistreated, and the dolls who stay silent or give the programmed response are regarded well. It reminds me of the psychological abuse I grew up with.
Without much of a smooth transition, it became time for the debut. Every second was tense for me, as I was extremely invested in these characters (not counting Patrick and Ricky, of course). The character interactions were intriguing, and the dancing was beautiful and well-animated. Unfortunately, even with that amazing dance, Emilyko and Kate are still set to fail the debut unless something changes. I'm not sure what was happening at the end, but Edward led all the Shadows out into the garden area. The dolls were left behind with no idea what was happening. I can hardly wait to see what's next.
Spy x Family: Episode 5
I really enjoyed this fun episode. Seeing Anya accepted into the fancy school was awesome. It's great when she is happy. All the insanity at Newston Castle was so much fun. I also like the humor in this series, like with Yor being drunk. The music and visuals are great too. Overall, this was another entertaining, funny, and cute installment of a fantastic family anime.
Summertime Render: Episode 5
If the last episode was intense, this one was even more insane. The shadows launched their plan to attack the festivalgoers in order to bring back their "mother," who seems to be some kind of god. I was surprised by how much of a calamity this was. An entire small island with several thousand people on it was swallowed by the shadows. Who knows how many victims it would claim once it hit the mainland? Anyway, it was also surprising that the glasses girl was Ryunosuke Nagumo, the author. She knows who Shinpei is and wants to save him. We also learned that Shinpei's power is limited, and that the source of it is his blue eye, which was taken from the god of the shadows. Once again, I'm excited for the next episode!
Tokyo 24th Ward: Episode 5
It was a very tragic episode of Tokyo 24. We saw the story of Raito Kunai and how he went from being a promising programmer and creator to a domestic terrorist. We also got to see the truth behind the mysterious drug "D." Although this event went better than the hurricane scenario last time, it still felt unsatisfying, since Kunai had to be shot and killed. I'm interested in seeing where the anime goes from here, and learning what brings it altogether. There is definitely something behind the hazard cast system. The end of the episode mentions the Kanae system, which Koki's father is trying to put in place. It'll be interesting to see what that's about.
Hoshi no Samidare
(Lucifer and The Biscuit Hammer): Episode 5
This episode felt weird and unbalanced like usual for this show. The sudden character death was not effective in making me feel anything. The visuals continue to look cheap and old. The music is good though, and I do like Yuuhi and Sami. However, something came to my attention that bothered me immensely regarding these two. Samidare isn't even eighteen yet, and Yuuhi is either 19 or 20. This romance now rubs me the wrong way, because I thought Sami was 18. That's about it for my thoughts on this installment. It wasn't very impressive.
Hataraku Maou-sama (The Devil is a Part-Timer): Season 2 Episode 5
This episode felt long but was still enjoyable. There might be a while of silly stuff and beach fanservice before we get more lore or world-building information. I don't really mind, since I already knew it was a casual and not serious anime. Alus Ramus is cute as usual. It's nice that Urushihara got out of the apartment, even though he's complaining about working. It's still good for him to be out sometimes. As usual, I highly enjoyed the art and animation. This is a fun show, and I'm more than willing to keep watching.
Sasaki and Miyano: Episode 5
This anime is so calming and healing. I really love it. Seeing Miyano start to fall in love was truly adorable. I'm glad this anime addressed the issue of Miyano's feminine face and his insecurities about it. It added another layer of depth to Miyano's character and ensured that viewers don't think Sasaki only likes Miyano for his "girly" face. now that Sasaki has properly confessed, hopefully the two of them will start going out soon.
Tomodachi Game: Episode 10
Despite the many absurdities in the previous episodes, and a few annoyances in this episode, I had fun watching this chapter of Tomodachi Game. Maria's true face did not surprise me. I don't really buy it yet that Yuuichi has lost. I think he found some way to win. But we won't know for sure until the next episode. The crazy expressions and over-the-top nature of this anime is actually growing on me. There are some other things I don't like, such as casual misogyny and the problematic way they handled the gay kiss. Ultimately, this is a stupid anime, but it can still be a guilty pleasure to watch for laughs and a little bit of excitement.
Thank you for reading~