Anime Reviews

================TLDR===========================

STORY: 6.5/10 (Review adjusted based on show length)

Complexity: 8
World-Building: 7
Pace: 4
Direction: 7

CHARACTERS: 5/10 (Review adjusted based on show length)
...
Quantity vs Quality Ratio: 3
Development: 4
Depth: 8

ART, ANIMATION & MUSIC: 6.6/10 (Review adjusted based on air date)

Art Style: 8
Animation Quality: 4
Soundtrack & SFX Quality: 8

ENJOYMENT LEVEL: 6/10

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I don't know why I watched this anime 26 years later, but here's my review of it having kept in mind that it's a product of its time. Boogiepop Phantom is like an art piece, something you can admire from afar but struggle to interact/resonate with. The entire feel of the show is cold, liminal and distant. The main praise I can offer is on its bold move to adopt a non-linear narrative for a 12 episode show with a reasonably complex plot. Though it has issues, the main one being it tries too hard to carve out an identity of depth that it comes off unnaturally forced. When I asked myself the basic question of 'Is this confusing, non-linear, vague narrative really required?' My opinion is that the answer is no. The show is clear about the beginning and the end, but everything in the middle seemed like some tangled mess just unloaded onto the viewer to unpack. Let's see if I can break it down effectively,

===============================================

=====PROS=====
++ While the narrative is questionable, the directing deserved an applause. The anime was relatively low budget, so the director had to be clever with the way stills and visuals lined up. The choice of focusing on audio and fade filters for video paid dividends, both for viewer experience and for the production budget.
+ The characters (though I can't namedrop many) are relatively deep/unique in theme considering the timespan of the show. Since the narrative is non-linear, they don't seem to have predictable roles (or predictable behavior) and it's hard to figure out what will happen to them in advance.
+ I think the audio, SFX department carried a lot of weight. It's difficult to make anime loaded with still shots engaging, especially when the plot isn't straightforward. I would say audio + faded visuals set 90% of the mood easily. I can imagine the same anime having nice vibrant colors + average audio, being a horrible mess.

=====NEUTRAL=====
= The show is complex and I like complex shows but, it's artificially engineered complexity through storytelling. I don't like it or hate it. It gives the show identity and uniqueness but smothers its clarity and focus.
= There is some unique lore and setting that goes mostly undeveloped. It is implied and hidden, like the viewer ought to have known that without any prior mention.

=====CONS=====
-- The pace is ill-managed. Being slow is not a crime, but being slow + non-linear + 12 episodes + fake complexity definitely is. And the payoff for any form of buildup is underwhelming because it doesn't utilize the slow pace to do much.
-- There are many characters, some deep, but none really memorable. The key issue is nearly zero development or sparse screentime. They just exist as odd, weird and different. Why? Who knows. They change but the change is not particularly meaningful. Their screentime is so minimal that it gets hard to get familiar with them. The only one I recognize and remember well is Poom Poom, because of his name and the dudes' thing for balloons.
-- Even for its time, the animation is lackluster. There are some 'action' scenes (nothing comparable to modern shounen anime), but it could have done with more. Budgeting constraints probably had a lot to do with this though.
- The whole show felt as if I was intruding into a story midway, like I just started watching season 2 or 3 where most of the background is already set in stone or watched from episode 6 instead of 1.
- Not a fan of non-linear storytelling on this one. I felt it was too fragmented, maybe if it had fewer stories but fleshed them out more? I can see the untapped potential here and the supernatural phenomenon needed more screentime or explanation for sure.

Overall, I think the show is distinct but maybe too distinct. I felt like the focus shifted away from the story and characters into keeping its mood and weirdly structured storytelling. It became an experiment of a medium of storytelling rather than a product of a good story. Maybe that unorthodox approach may attract certain kinds of viewers, maybe I'm just not one of those viewers. On the other hand, I found it's implicit messaging so subtle that it missed any kind of emotional impact it could've had. appearing cold and unreachable instead.

Having been anime I personally started with, this season holds a special place in my heart. Although simple, it sets a great foundation for the whole story and introduces the characters in an interesting and engaging way. At no point was I bored while watching this series, and even having been critical of anime going into it, I came out of the first season with a desire to watch more anime.

Many people will tell you that MHA is cringe and not worth watching, but I honestly think 90% of those who say that haven't watched it at all. This show is 120% worth watching and ... a great anime to start with.

This adaptation of Berserk was simply very good. I loved the art style it went for, and was only slightly disappointing by the lackluster CGI and missing parts. Having watched Berserk 1997 too, I would still recommend watching it over this one as it covers more of the events that occur during the Golden Age arc, but if you are more of a casual watcher, then this ones great too. I liked seeing slightly past the eclipse too, as Berserk 1997 kind of ended in a bad spot personally.

Overall, this 13 episode season is definitely worth watching, even if you have already watched 1997. Had ... there been less CGI and more of the beautiful 2d animation it displayed here and there, it would probably be a 9, even with all the missing story parts.

Awful the dropped after season 1 It literally is the most boring bs ive ever watched i dont recommend It to others i usually like isekais but this one tries not to be like the others isekais but does not work dying and dying over and over until he wins and worst of all the only beautiful girl is shaula.

The story is unique but does not work the art style is good though and its not realistic because Subaru is a dumb and they were lowkey well rounded.

If you want to watch a real isekai i recommend the saga of Tanya the evil, ... mushoku Tensei, tensura or the eminence in the shadow

Before that, I want to give major appreciation to CoMix Wave for doing an amazing job creating anime with god-tier visuals and cinematography like Suzume no Tojimari and Makoto Shinkai's other works.

Suzume no Tojimari carries such deep meaning, and Suzume is so courageous for tackling a theme that is very sensitive and leaves a lasting scar on Japanese society—earthquakes.

The music collaboration with Radwimps is also extraordinary. Considering that Radwimps has been on board since Your Name, I thought they had past their prime—but that turned out not to be the case.

Unfortunately, nothing is perfect.

I feel so sorry for Makoto Shinkai fans. Even though it tackles ... a different theme than before, the pattern is just so obvious when you look at Shinkai's previous works. As a Makoto Shinkai fan who has watched his movies prior to Suzume, I felt that Suzume was very boring and extremely predictable. That doesn't mean the story is bad, but like I said before: "I feel so sorry for Makoto Shinkai fans" who already know the pattern and feel like this is just a disaster swap.

Another highly overrated Anime. While it is not bad anime it is very far from being good, let alone something more. It's biggest strength is that it doesn't have any of the usual mayor faults many anime have, and.... Well for most part that is it. Ok, the art during first ED deserves a lot of credit for mixing some kind of classical art, psychedelic art and anime art to create something genially new and unique yet still quote pretty, and an OP song is nice and sounds kinda like made by vocaloids, has that robotic note witch makes it unique and nice, And there ... are a few scenes that give off nice melancholy feelings, and I guess piecing isn't bad at all, but now that is really all positive I can say about this anime. For negative, where to even start. Characters, they are very blend, have practically no motivations, goals, desires, ambitions, and for most part are emotionally numb. Relationship between characters are barely existing, for most part, especially from Frieren's side, she threats everyone who is with her mostly the same. Anime as a whole also has no goals or directions, neither on story or characters relationships parts. Character development is pretty much non existent. Setting, I would call it generic, but honestly it is even more blend than a generic fantasy setting, the only original ideas to separate it from any other fantasy setting is elves being nearly extinct in this world, they mostly being aromatic and the way humanoid demons are described, and none of those are very good ideas if you ask me. Story, it's mostly like watching bunch of boring side quests. Emotions/Drama, well except for often melancholy feelings there is nothing else. I am not even sure what else to say because this anime has pretty much nothing else to offer. It also gets quite boring to watch pretty early on. I honestly have no idea why this anime is so popular or what do people even see in it. 5.1/10

Cute, but not perfect.

I mostly liked Rilakkuma. I found it an imaginative short, with a gorgeous art style. There is no continuity, or deep themes, and nothing that would be of concern for a 3-year-old. Each episode is essentially a short sketch, with actual content of 1 minutes, and about 30 seconds of ending credits.

While fun, it won't be for everyone. In my opinion it is a little short, and would be ideal at about 3 minutes, plus ending credits. As it is, it would work well for children, or slotting between other anime episodes as a cleanser.

While I do stand by the rating of (8) for this first season, I can't simply ignore what comes after. And that's an okay-ish follow up with S2 that already starts going off the rails, and by the time you get into S3 the train is diving into the ocean. There's a couple of episodes worth watching in Part 2 of Season 3 that are well worth watching and among the peak of the series, but only because they're essentially a delayed ending to S2. Everything after that just gets worse, and worse, and worse...

At the end of the day this is a show ... with an exceptional high-concept premise. S1 not only delivers on that premise but offers one of the most gripping episode-to-episode experiences. I actually can't think of a show that held my attention so intently since... maybe S1 of Prison Break. Ironically another show that could only handle it for a season until it broke down into almost comical storylines.

Isayama himself admitted he wanted the ending of Attack on Titan to be extremely bleak but needed to change gears because the first show in 2013 exploded in popularity and created a brand that had to be properly mined and exploited. Though the statement itself is already a red flag because what the material he wrote early on lends itself more to shounen territory. So what was the plan there? To have a story that was all about how you should always fight even against impossible odds only to end it in some everyone-dies bleakness? As you can tell, he's kind of a dumbass, and this non-spoiler of his original intent should give you a good idea of what kind of mind you're dealing with. In the end what you get is a complete fucking Frankenstein's monster of a story. It changes tonally on a whim and completely rewrites characters routinely to fit whatever plot is unfolding. Thematic consistency is non-existent.

Oh, and I FORGOT the worst thing about this show that gets WAY WORSE over time. The constant plot conveniences that exist just to drive the story forwards. There's one character that, no joke, probably gets defeated like five times and keeps magically getting rescued by plot armor. The worst offender by far though is structuring it in such a way that the payoff that should emerge after many of these narrative arcs just doesn't come. As a made up example, imagine a show spending a good chunk of time trying to capture a spy to get information on who he is working for... only for him to swallow a cyanide pill at the last moment. This is fine if it happens in a movie and everything from the setup to the execution is 10-15 mins. But when you wait SEVERAL HOURS for that to conclude only to get nothing? It is a total slap in the face. And this kind of amateur hour writing is rife throughout.

Unless you can compartimentalize like a god, I'd say just stay away from the whole thing. You will feel obligated to watch countless episodes that go absolutely nowhere. I skipped the entirety of S3 Part 1 when I realized what it'd be and went forward with a brief summary. And that summary turned out to be completely unnecessary because Part 2 just goes over the crucial information anyway, so that's real top tier storytelling right there.

Even if you suspect you disagree with my estimation of the later seasons, the one thing I can warn you about as an objective metric is that by S4 you are watching an entirely different show. It's like starting in early One Piece and ending up in end-game Gantz.

A Ghibli-esque tragic tale of the realities of war. With a beautiful analogy and a little avant-garde.

This film is beautiful. Undeniably. But in the most heartbreaking way. Without a doubt it’s a protest piece. It delivers its message so clearly. Sometimes showing you it directly. Sometimes represented in analogy.

The main analogy in this film is done so well. You can tell what they’re starting to get at pretty soon. By the end of the film you fully understand what they’re getting at. Does a really good job at keeping you engaged, while not letting you fully figure it out until the end.

The animation/style ... is beautiful. Checks out though they brought on studio Ghibli legends. The island is stunning. When they start getting into the action sequences the way they do those are so unique as well. The flower petals are haunting. The music in this film is also really well done. I have yet to hear kensuke ushio not cook up a masterpiece. Some of the biggest beats of the story are helped a lot by the music.

If I was to give any complaints, I would have two. I think the biggest would be the pacing could get a little fast? It’s not really that bad, but it does feel like it moves quick at points. Mostly around the middle of the film. The other would be a few absurd moments in a grounded film? Absurd may be a strong word. There’s just one or two moments where things don’t seem very realistic? In a film that’s very grounded it’s a little odd.

Overall, the whole story is incredible. While there’s a main message, there’s other little messages all throughout it. The story can get almost cruel and helpless. To the point you might wonder why you’re watching. If you get to that point though? That means you’ve understood the movie.

I don't know what everyone is saying about the animation, their brains must be fried, yeah the cityscape background looks strange, but that's is why for me, this anime is better than all the other Isekai trash out this season. The art style is actually extremely interesting!
If it wasn't for the Art style and animation I probably wouldn't have watched past episode 1, (who am I kidding I love Isekai trash)
Also, there is blood! Real blood! An anime isekai that actually has bloody scenes and NO R@PE!! Finally the Japanese obsession in isekai's with seeing bad guys r@pe women isn't in this one... We are ... truly blessed...

Story is what you'd expect, but the main character is likeable and cool. Again, its. all. about. the. art. style.
Maybe it's like marmite.

"If it's a boy, Shinji. If it's a girl, Rei."

I Can't Understand What My Husband Is Saying is an enjoyable and funny anime. It's a short tribute to old-school otakus. The husband is inspired by the otaku stereotype of the 2000s and early 2010s.

To be honest, the first part confused me because everything happens too fast. Since it's based on a 4-koma manga, the situations don't last more than 1 minute. But in the last episodes, there is a continuous plot throughout the chapter. The plot is just a sequence of events—sometimes about the same topic, other times it feels random.

If you are bored, you ... can watch it quickly in less than an hour. It's not a masterpiece or a work of genius, but it's good, and it has references to Evangelion and other animes.

Just putting this review out there because I feel bad that it seems to have more bad reviews than good ones.

I think it’s a good anime if you base it on the story rather than the animation and, I guess, some of the voice acting.

If you’re expecting a full-blown shounen like Jujutsu Kaisen or animation like Demon Slayer, then this is probably not for you. This anime is more of a slow-paced drama with a drizzle of action.

I like how the MC isn’t a total prodigy. Unlike other isekai where the characters’ powers are always portrayed as amazing, in TBATE, the MC has limitations for ... logical reasons. He isn’t just a powered-up baby because he came from another world. Instead, he uses the understanding and experience from his previous life to gain more knowledge and gradually make himself stronger.

I really love the plot because it tackles the whole concept of existence—how a cyborg just wants to live and exist like a human. The meaning behind the story runs super deep. On top of that, the storytelling is really well-crafted, and you can tell the animation was made with the highest quality possible. The world-building totally resembles the Hong Kong slums, which fits the dark, cyberpunk vibe they were going for perfectly.

So yeah, if you’re into cyberpunk anime, you’re definitely gonna love this movie. Even if cyberpunk isn't really your thing, I’d still say give it a shot—it’ll totally open your eyes to just ... how amazing an anime movie can be across the board. Every single aspect of this film complements each other.

That said, you definitely need to focus while watching because the dialogue gets pretty heavy, not to mention all the tech jargon that might leave you scratching your head at first.

"The great passage" has an interesting & unknown plot for many anime audience. It's a slice of life, however compared to other animes of similar genre, it focuses on a very different topic, the lives of dictionary editors & people surrounding them. It sounds dull but, maybe give it a try? At least, that's what i told myself.

Many might find the plot complex, less intriguing, but to many, or at least to me the storytelling & pacing was unknown yet very comforting work. For example, it captured the true work culture of Japan, the surroundings, corporate challenges and how people from dictionary writing professions feel ... or how they can be at work.

The anime doesn’t have dramatic events at all and this may or may not suit everyone. And, I think this is a very important point, as many anime audience chose to enjoy episode ending cliffhangers nowadays or at least that has become the trend.

There is no emotional rollercoaster, there are life events of course, but, those didn’t overshadow the main aim, which is to portray how a dictionary is created, what are the work flows, how people in a publisher company works and the surroundings of course.

Overall, if you enjoy other slice of life or simply a curious person, who doesn’t live for random ragebaits, this should be fine.

An absolute guilty pleasure anime.

Our heroine gets kidnapped by some men in black from her campus and ends up on the beach at an unknown island, and the first thing she sees... are a pair of lesbian lovers who proceed to get each other off and one transforms into a grenade launcher...?

Okay, first up, I'm going to admit it- this series is pure ecchi yuri, practically knocking right on the door of H like a caveman locked out by his pet sabertooth, but it stops just short. You will still see plenty of skin and breasts and plenty of sexuality on display, so ... be warned. (There's a reason this caught an 18+...) It takes its subject very seriously- so expect the ability of these girls to get their partner off and fast to be on full display.

I do enjoy the actual story- one about suddenly being thrust into a world they know nothing about, and then one in the later story about one being left behind in the mud while everyone else ends up in the spotlight. It's... actually pretty compelling for an ecchi.

While the animation on lots of things is pretty well done, the bodies, well... look a bit undefined in certain places? Like, some of the broader shots really don't have a lot of detail, and other details seem to be skimped on. Voice work is okay- it's not exactly the best out there, and well... a lot of it IS just the yelps and yips and other noises that you might expect, but there's some very solid lines in there, too.

The music is okay, nothing to write home about, but it's very situational and always applicable to the scene. And yes, the story is shockingly well-written. There's not a plot hole or bunny to be found, and for those worried- yes, there IS a happy ending. But also be warned, there's some darker stuff near the end- feel free to advance or skip past it as need be.

Look. I know it's a fairly graphic yuri anime, but this actually is better than a lot of the stuff I've watched. If you're willing to see that, give it a shot and see if it's your cup of tea!

I would not recommend watching this anime. It is not good for many reasons. Inconsistent animations, drawings, skipping frames, and twords the end of the anime the only good thing about this anime is the chibi art style. It gets worse and worse. Mouth flaps are not lined up, characters aren't even looking at the other characters, the characters in some scenes are drawn so poorly I couldn't really focus on the plot, and you can tell they were running out of money halfway through the production.

The plot didnt have much weight to it and was very basic and not my cup of ... tea. Not only was he her caretaker/family, he was about ~10yrs older then her so the age gap of 15 and 25. It was just cringe for me and had they met later in life, the age gap wouldn't be so bad, but he basically groomed her since she was a kid, and the excuse is they're yakuza and therefore must have a very unconventional relationship. MCs are terrible and most of the supporting characters don't really do anything or are also terrible. watch it if you like but I give this a 3/10.

At best, a "turn off your brain" watch. At its worst, a borderline unwatchable dumpster fire that makes you question the implications of giving free college to literary students. The animation is lackluster, giving Project No.9 a run for their money. The story could've been written by any number of generative AI models, and I would have been none the wiser. The music is gross and insults my very being. I finished the series only because I had to know if it got better -- it didn't. I often wonder if in the afterlife, they replay your entire life through your eyes for God to ... judge. If he happens to see this part, I apologize.

It's a real gem. I absolutely loved the music—it's incredible—and the character of Ash Lynx; what a man. There’s even some romance, though I’m not sure it was strictly necessary.
I highly recommend it, even if the ending is quite abrupt. The central storyline really stands out from the rest, and the plot feels dynamic rather than static. Overall, it stays true to the 1985 original—it doesn't lose the essence of the source material.
The animation is great, too! The opening sequence is really polished; for a while, I had it on constant repeat—it's a masterpiece.
I think it’ll appeal to a lot of people, but you do ... have to pay close attention to the story.

Pq eu tô escrevendo isso em 2026? Eu n sei, mas esse anime foi um divisor de aguas, certo, NTR, é algo que definitivamente me incomoda bastante, mas dito isso, esse anime é bom da forma mais distorcida e bizarra possivel, se vc assistiu e gostou de Kuzu No Honkai é bem capaz de você gostar dessa obra, apesar do claro teor fetichizado a serie consegue ser realista de certa forma, a bagunça emocional da vida amorosa das protagonistas é algo estranhamente comum, porem isso é algo que só quem assistir vai entender.

E... Ta, eu sou obrigado a adimitir que sou suspeito para falar, levando ... em conta que meu drama favorito é Kuzu No Honkai, adoro series com temas problemático, personagens mal caráter daqueles que vc sente odio, muito por isso eu acabei gostando bastante desse anime.

Porem...

Eu mesmo assim, não recomendaria Netsuzou Trap nem para o meu pior inimigo, de um olhar neutro, esse anime não vale a pena o tempo, mesmo sendo curto (cerca de 2hrs você termina tudo).

Meu veredito é:Se vc é como eu e adora dramas realistas com personagens doentes e tambem, claro, curte um Yuri, assista, talvez você goste, caso contrario, PASSE LONGE.

Compared to its first season, Mushoku Tensei Season 3 is slow but a bit faster than Season 2. Season 3 shows the characters' everyday life while building the world. It doesn't have much action like S1 (maybe even less than S2?). It's power scaling is also a LOT LOT lower than I imagined in S1.

My usual gripe- Just like any other modern anime and manwhas, the word "God" is used VERY LIGHTLY and doesn't contain the much value as you can call them "Kings", "Masters" or whatever top titles, and it won't lose any value.

Story (7 out of 10): The show starts with showing ... what Eris is up to after leaving Rudeus. After that, it transitions to Rudeus and shows the characters' everyday life and the small changes.

Animation (8 out of 10): As usual, the animation is top notch. I have not seen any issues as a casual viewer. I would consider it to be top-class but there's not much fighting, fast moving scenes and need of effects, in other words, ACTION.

Audio (7 out of 10): It's fine. Nothing extraordinarily good or bad for a casual like me to notice.

Enjoyment (5 out of 10)- The show was quite boring after Eris's Training Arc and till Nanahoshi's Illness Arc. The lower scale also made me sad. But the animation kept it attracting. I do appreciate the cutting Opening and Ending Clips for improved story progression. Perhaps this season is trying to build up the actions for the upcoming seasons? Or, perhaps Bleach TYBW and ReZero led to my higher expectation for this blockbuster show in this season.

Conclusion-
So, Mushoku Tensei Season 3 is a good show and definitely better than the 2nd Season. It gets a solid 7 out of 10.
I recommend it to those who even bothered to watch the previous seasons and endured, looked past or even ignored the pedo moments.

(My personal gripe with its power scaling is, despite showing the amazing water magic spell of Roxy in S1, S3 has nothing bigger to offer. Rather, it shows how low in scale the actual power system is. And, our Rudy is actually quite weak despite the whole cast saying or indicating since S1 that "Rudy has the largest mana pool". As it seems, Rudy has spent most of his time creating Erotic figurines, having s*x, fapping, admiring panties, and thus forgot or lost the motivation to train and improve his magic. Perhaps he will start training after Episode 11: Turning Point 4?)

How this managed to get over a 3/10 rating here is beyond me. This might possibly be the worst season of an anime I have ever seen. Season 1 was an 8 for me, and season 2 a 9. If you are like me, and waited TEN GOD DAMN YEARS for this, you will understand my pain.

The animation was terrible, if you could even call it animation. One person noted that in a frame of one of the episodes one character had an extra finger. Was this animated using AI??? MAYBE! But AI surely could have done better.

The Story was terrible too. Nothing happens!!! I ... don't even remember what the plot was, even though I remember season 1 and 2 well.

Just stay away from this pile of excrement.

Mad Bull 34 is four episodes of guns, sleaze, absurdity, enormous heart and an absolutely fantastic soundtrack, all crammed into one gloriously trashy OVA.

Sleepy is big-hearted, immensely likeable, seemingly unstoppable and built like a brick shithouse, while Daizaburo is small, slight and still more than capable of kicking arse when it counts. Their chemistry is fantastic, and the fact that there’s no tedious manufactured conflict between them makes their friendship and partnership feel like the real heart of the OVA.

New York is a filthy fantasy hellhole full of depraved criminals, questionable character decisions and trigger-happy cops. The action is fast, tense and gloriously excessive, with ... gunfights, beatings and explosions all pushed just far enough into cartoon insanity to make the whole thing ridiculously entertaining.

Everything about it is sleazy: nudity, sexual violence, brutal gore and profanity. But the animation has such an exaggerated, almost caricatured quality that the filth rarely feels oppressive. It’s too ridiculous, too energetic and too committed to its own nonsense. Somehow, though, the serious moments still land. Daizaburo getting beaten nearly to death while buying time to save Perrine is completely over-the-top, but the animation and music sell it so well that it genuinely hits.

And that soundtrack is fucking fantastic. It’s all synths, rock, funk and bluesy guitar, and it makes everything better. The title-card music is badass, the action cues make the shootouts feel even bigger, and the quieter tracks give the emotional scenes far more weight than you’d expect from something this deranged.

The Manga Entertainment dub is exactly the right way to experience it too. Sleepy sounds perfect, the New York accents are hilariously overcooked, and the villains sound like complete maniacs.

Mad Bull 34 is filthy, stupid, violent, funny, oddly sweet and completely sincere about every one of those things. I absolutely love it.

Contrived and lazy at best, embarrassing and pointless at worst. Somehow manages to say less in 12 episodes than other shows say in 12 minutes.
The "point" of this presentation, if it can even be said there is one, seems to be pure wish fulfillment. Guy runs around with a harem killing monsters. All well and good, but we end up with shallow characters and a shallow setting with no identifiable plot. If the most interesting part of an episode of a fantasy show is when the MC grabs his coworker's waist on accident, something is deeply wrong.
There are no stakes. No one suffers ... worse than a few scrapes or getting scared a bit by a monster. Zero internal conflict, and the external conflict is resolved spontaneously without much effort. It would be unsurprising to learn that this show was written with the fanservice first, then the rest of the intervening content thrown together at random. It doesn't seem to respect your time or your ability to focus on anything other than tits and thighs. Even with that said, there isn't enough explicit content for it to be worth watching as an ecchi show.
It's a shambling cakewalk through a series of awkward, half-baked fanservice scenes with some half-assed monster fight sequences struggling to hold it all together. The writing team clearly just wanted to write porn, but instead we got... whatever this is.

This anime is about a group of students who are part of something called the "Otogi Bank." The purpose of this bank is to help people in exchange for favors. So, basically, they fulfill a request for you, and in return, you owe them a favor. That's the essence of the anime.

Now, talking about the main characters, we have Ookami, who is a classic tsundere girl. She's explosive and short-tempered, but deep down, she's actually quite delicate. She has this personality because of a traumatic experience she went through in middle school. I won't go into details because it would be a spoiler. This subplot ... involving her is explored and developed throughout the story alongside the requests for help that the Otogi Bank receives from other students.

As for the protagonist, we have Ryoushi, a guy who suffers from social anxiety and openly confessed his love to Ookami. (This isn't even really a spoiler, since it happens within the first few minutes of the first episode.) After confessing, he ends up joining the Otogi group to help other people while also trying to become a better person so he can stay by Ookami's side, since she doesn't want someone weak and cowardly beside her. So, overall, the anime is about the two protagonists improving themselves and overcoming their personal problems while helping other people along the way.

The anime has an open ending. There is no definitive conclusion, and throughout the series, most episodes focus on comedy and the Otogi Bank helping people, without much time being dedicated to developing the relationship between the main characters. However, despite the limited amount of development between them, we can still see a significant improvement in both of their personalities. Ookami becomes more confident and becomes more comfortable with Ryoushi's presence, while Ryoushi becomes braver and no longer suffers from social anxiety as severely as he did before. I consider that a positive aspect.

But what irritated me the most about this anime was the narrator. She's extremely intrusive. I understand that some series use a narrator, but in this anime, she is constantly talking over the characters, explaining useless things and sometimes even repeating something that has already been said. There are moments when you actually lose focus on what's important because of her, to the point where you have to rewind certain scenes just to understand what the characters were talking about because the narrator simply DOESN'T KNOW WHEN TO SHUT UP.

I also have to mention that I thought a certain comedy scene was really cool, where there is a crossover featuring Taiga from Toradora! and her friends, as well as Misaka Mikoto and her friends from To Aru Kagaku no Railgun. It's a very brief comedic scene that lasts around 10 seconds, but I found it interesting given the context.

To wrap things up... I thought the anime was pretty good overall, despite the annoying narrator. I just wish they had focused a little more on developing the relationship between the two protagonists. Also, this anime has never received a continuation since it was released. Yes, this comment is being written in 2026, 16 years after the anime originally aired, and it still hasn't received a continuation. The manga has probably already finished by now, but the TV series itself will most likely never get a proper ending.

What Bleach always excels in in style. The opening sequence of TYBW Part 4 demonstrates this perfectly with immaculate directing choices, hard cuts that break up monotony of typical anime choices, soaring drone shots creating momentum and a score that carries so much weight and momentum. The orchestration is phenomenal, recorded clearly with a live ensemble and clearly following the scene which is incredibly rare for seasonal anime. However, this lasts for about 5 minutes before staling and leaving the audience with nothing to grasp onto.

While watching this show it is significantly more enjoyable to ignore the dialogue as it actively takes away from the ... visuals on screen. I guarantee one could make up more compelling character motivations in their own head to match the jaw-dropping (at times, at other times standard or dare I say... below average) visuals on screen

Yoruichi yams. Yeah man lets make her ONLY possible powerup be her losing ALL of clothes and gaining stockings. Her losing any sort of autonomy and getting turned into the catgirl sex object actually put vomit in my mouth.

103 fucking side characters and none of them have any actual character writing. It is painful, the fights are far too long and drawn out with zero justification or enjoyment. I dont CARE about any of these fights because the characters are barely even real. They are power vessels without any clear motivations or backstories.

They have been fighting the poison guy (had to look up his name) Askin Nakk Le Vaar for over a season at this point, and I still dont care about any of the characters involved. The fight is not even entertaining or witful, it has no clear dynamics, no strategy and just goes from "Haha! I have not done this before!" "Wait! Now I must pull out my ultimate move!" "I was joking, NOW THIS is my ultimate move!" over and over and over. Its laughably bad


I normally like to write along as watching each episode, but I have very little to actually say. The fighting is genuinely non sensical and the equivalent of watching a computer or tv screen when it is not used for a bit. Feels like I am at the dentist waiting for a cavity to be filled and staring at the pretty colors for 20 minutes.

Genuinely there is NO explanation of powers or even fight choreography beyond, run forward, jump back and cut stuff.

its just bad

I wouldn't say this is the worst piece of romance media out there but it's definitely dissapointing. Before watching this I saw immense amounts of love and hype on different platforms, saying it was the best romance in a while and of 2026, but now I can confirm it definitely isn't.
If i could describe IMFWTSPGIMC in one word i would say "basic"
This anime is literally just your generic romcom manga that happened to get animated. The perspective is from this loner loser boy who miraculously pulls this pretty girl who has a wierd side, a very familiar trope. The plot is pretty basic with ... no unique arcs other than the family issues arc. the side cast has no depth or writing and essentially contributes very little to the actual story. The pacing is quite fast and most of the drama/problems within the plot get resolved within 1 episode and even the main characters have no depth other than their insecurity struggles. This anime is literally just a loser's fantasy (not too uncommon for the romane genre).
It may not be terrible but it's just simply far from good and lives nowhere up to the glaze it recieves. I think the main reason it gets so much hype is because of the romance popularity spike of the last 3 months where many newgen fans haven't seen anything actually good yet.
Truly just another boring and generic romance

Good looking and well animated.
Full of funny moments, good action and thrill, mysterious scenario and backstory.
The way that magic is presented in the classroom by the replacement teacher is interesting and more so how it works in this world.
Although not explored that much the variables in how it works is cool.
The characterization of each personality is good, there was a vast cast but ofcourse still limited.
There was even a character in specific that was a big lookalike on another popular anime that I wondered where this was going.
The Main Character our replacement teacher seemed to be a worthy and capable fighter.
But it wasn't always like ... that.

I'd really like that 2nd season to come soon.

This anime is an absolute masterpiece. I recommend it to anyone who appreciates deep, character-driven storytelling; those who spout nonsense about pedophilia and rape clearly haven't actually watched the anime, or at least weren't paying attention to its true themes of growth and redemption. If you don't like it, don't watch it, and above all, stop review bombing a show simply because it dares to depict flawed, realistic human behavior.

What sets Mushoku Tensei apart is its extraordinarily rich world-building and uncompromised depth. The world feels alive and vast, complete with distinct cultures, languages, and complex magic systems. It avoids cheap power fantasies and instead delivers ... a unique, unpredictable story about a broken individual getting a raw, hard-earned second chance at life.
Combined with stunning animation and a breathtaking score, the show completely absorbs you into its setting. It has effortlessly jumped to the very top of my favorite anime list—I can't wait to see how it continues!

**Cowboy Bebop — Review**

*Cowboy Bebop* foi uma obra de que gostei bastante, principalmente pela forma como consegue misturar uma boa dose de *slice of life* com histórias mais profundas e momentos de ação. Ao longo do anime, a maioria dos episódios consegue funcionar muito bem por si só, mas, ao mesmo tempo, vai desenvolvendo os personagens e criando uma história maior por trás de tudo.

Um dos maiores pontos positivos para mim foram os personagens. O Spike é obviamente o centro da obra, e o mistério em torno do seu passado foi algo que me manteve bastante interessado. A forma como o anime vai revelando aos ... poucos o que aconteceu com ele faz com que a sua história seja cada vez mais envolvente, principalmente quando começamos a perceber a ligação dele com o seu passado.

No entanto, os personagens de que mais gostei foram a **Faye** e o **Jet Black**. Ambos têm passados muito interessantes, e achei que o anime trabalhou muito bem as suas histórias. A Faye, principalmente, tem uma história bastante trágica, e a maneira como ela lida com a perda do seu passado e com a própria identidade torna a personagem bastante interessante. Já o Jet tem um passado mais ligado à sua antiga vida como polícia e às relações que deixou para trás, o que também ajuda bastante a desenvolver a sua personalidade.

Por outro lado, senti que **Ein e Ed** não tiveram tanto destaque quanto poderiam ter tido. Apesar de serem personagens divertidos e contribuírem bastante para a dinâmica da tripulação, achei que as suas histórias e personalidades poderiam ter sido mais exploradas. Não considero isso um grande problema, mas é algo que senti que poderia ter sido melhor aproveitado.

Outro ponto que gostei bastante foi a **trilha sonora**. A música combina perfeitamente com a atmosfera de *Cowboy Bebop* e ajuda muito a criar a identidade da obra. O estilo musical encaixa-se muito bem tanto nos momentos mais descontraídos como nos momentos mais dramáticos.

E falando do final, acho que os **dois últimos episódios são facilmente a melhor parte do anime**. O encerramento da história do Spike é muito marcante e consegue dar um peso enorme a tudo o que foi construído anteriormente. Foi justamente por causa desses episódios que a minha nota sobe de um 8 para um **9**.

No geral, considero *Cowboy Bebop* um anime consistentemente bom. Durante praticamente toda a obra, eu daria um **8**, porque mantém uma qualidade bastante estável e apresenta bons personagens, histórias interessantes, uma excelente atmosfera e uma ótima trilha sonora. Porém, os seus momentos finais elevam bastante a experiência e fazem com que, no conjunto, eu considere que merece um **9/10**.

**Nota: 9/10**

Actually made me dissapointed.

The drawing style was pretty and so the soundtracks too, but that’s all. Male lead acted so weird, it almost felt like he manipulated female lead into developing feelings for him. In some scenes the female lead acted more proactive and manly than a male lead.

If you’re looking for cozy, “warm as a hug”, fuzzy feelings giving romance this will dissapoint. And the ending? Pretty much the same as many other average romances, nothing unique.

If you’re looking for anime with a lot of male lead teasing, flirt and weird behaviour than maybe this is for you. The anime itself didn’t have much ... drama, but all that indecisiveness in the end, fans of even slight drama might like it.

I’m glad it had 12 eps only, not continuing even if 2nd season would be released.

“Burn Up! W” is what happens when the creators want to blue ball you to oblivion.

I have no idea if it’s because of the ecchi humor, the inability of the show to take itself seriously for 75% of it’s runtime or the absolute shit show on display but this show has no right being this interesting as it is. Please understand something, “interesting” does not mean “good”. Unfortunately this mini series is a victim of the zeitgeist of the 90s, both in plot and story.

Before we start I would like to explain something. I will be talking about “plot” and “story”. Many people use these ... terms interchangeably. I’m not one of those people, so to make sure everyone is on the same page…
PLOT is the surface-level events. What, when, where, how and why (externally) things are happening.
STORY is why (internally) things are happening and what internally happens to the character during the plot.

The main problem this mini series has is that it has only 4 episodes and wasted 2,5 of them for world building and character introductions. Something that could have been done pretty well in 1, max 1,5, episode. The first episode actually does a solid job of that, we get an idea about what 3 out of 5 members of the Warrior team are about. After little rewriting you could easily fit a serviceable introduction to the whole team in just one episode leaving more time for the good stuff. Yes, there is good stuff in this, unfortunately it’s mostly in the second half of the 3rd episode and in episode 4.

From the very first episode the OVA sets up an overarching plot about a crime syndicate wanting to deal with a rather unique drug. The second episode expands on that and add some cyborg shenanigans to the mix. That’s actually interesting. I wanted to know who those people are, who is really in charge, what are they about and how will their plans be foiled by the main cast. Well too bad. We get almost nothing on that front. What we do get gives us no answers because the episode ends 3 minutes later and even the main cast is blue balled by the higher ups.

The first 2,5 episodes are almost all comedy with little mystery drama when the syndicate is on screen, they establish few things:
- this show will most likely not be a serious one
- it will be over the top (they even parodied Neon Genesis Evangelion’s Eva mech)
- Rio (POV character and the only member of the warrior squad that really matters in those 4 episodes) will get on my nerves (she did but she actually redeemed herself in the last episode)
Those episodes set up a lot, and I do mean A LOT, of things both plot and story wise. They set up a crime syndicate and its interests, they set up the main squad, the existence of combat androids, AI idols, some of the standard police members and… they do nothing with them. The whole episode 2 is just a waste of time in terms of long term consequences. Nothing that was introduced in that episode follows to the next. Ok, that’s not true, we get a new team member that we know almost nothing about and who is basically useless for the rest of the OVA (and she was useless even in her introductory episode). It’s a shame because from the second part of episode 3 the fun starts and doesn’t really stop till the end.

The second part of episode 3 shifts the vibe of the OVA completely. Before we got almost all comedy with no consequences, now we have a real, pretty solid, action drama. It starts with the death of someone close to the member of the Warrior squad (Rio) and that death impacts her behavior in a major way. That was the moment I knew this OVA can be special, that the writers weren’t complete hacks and understand the need of contrast, even in comedy. I dared to hope that maybe, just maybe, the grand finale won’t be a cheap joke that kills all the drama that is set up. You know what? For the first time in a long time, I was not disappointed.

Episode 4 goes all in on drama, Rio’s emotional turmoil and action. Yes, we do get some humor in all this but it’s used sparingly and actually in some good moments to release some tension that was building from the start of the episode. Judging by the previous 3 episodes I would not expect that this OVA has writers that can pull something like that of. I am so glad to be wrong. This whole episode is what the show from episode 2 should have been. Even if we are going for the comedy aspect. It gives characters motivation, gives them (ok, just Rio) moments of character development and above all else, the characters finally have a solid goal. Yes, a reactive one, but this is the type of a reactive goal that does intertwine with a proactive one. Is it good? For the world that we witnessed up to this point and the internal logic of it, I would say it is. Rio really shines in this episode, she’s no longer a comic relief that happens to be our POV character and becomes a heroine worth our attention. Someone I actually wanted to see have screen time and how will she react in this situation.

Unfortunately, at the end of the day this is not a proper story or character driven OVA, it relies almost completely on it’s plot to push things forward. It doesn’t make it bad, just bland. You can find enjoyment in watching it, just don’t get your hopes up.

[Joker voice] This show is pretty great and I'm tired of pretending it's not.

I think its current sub-7 rating does this an enormous disservice. The mix between genuine, well executed horror and incredibly endearing moments of, as previous reviewer mentioned, self-acceptance, and then hilarious gags is very well executed and engaging. In lesser hands, the swerves between a gory history of betrayal and revenge and a benevolent mountain god intervening in the lives of those who live around her in silly little ways that make all the difference would be liable to give you whiplash. Here, it just feels natural. Put simply, both parallel stories ... just work.

Dara-san is the nicest, most selfless heroine you can get. Her opening up to the fact that she's worthy o love and friendship isn't played up, but it is there, I think, especially when juxtaposing her original relationships as a priestess with her current identity. It is very sweet to see. The kids are hilarious and memorable, I have not once gotten tired of their antics. The authenticity of their friendship is refreshing.

Yes, there is a barrier of entry. Some are stoked about the nudity, others are appalled by it, but honestly, it makes all the sense in the world contextually and other than Kaoru, no one really sexualizes it or makes it creepy. There are other creepier characters, but Kaoru is willy enough to keep them at bay, so no harm no foul.

In all, this is a charming slice of life/horror story and I'll be gosh darned if I'm not giving it a good rating and a glowing review, no matter what anyone says. If you watch it, I hope you enjoy it. If you don't, I hope you enjoy whatever you watch next, life's too short not to.

A classical stupid show which says it's a harem, but it's all fake. It has romance, but that's also fake, and it has no character development.

(Beginning of the story)
Girls We will sacrifice our lives to save our Master (MC)! We love you, Master

Next episode These bitches fall for other guys...

So this shit is romance

... Character Development
There is no character development in the entire show. MC is plain throughout the entire show, just getting dragged around by every girl. Although he is a good person, his character development is zero.

Story
Just a bunch of girls start living with MC, making a mess in a funny way, calling out "We love you, Master!" and then, in the next episode, falling for other dudes. And people calling it a Harem romance. Wow

But these bitches want to spend the rest of their lives with MC

What's the joke here? This is supposed to be romance


The villain drama part wasn't serious at all

Overall
A stupid harem with stupid romance and a lame story

Non Non Biyori is a rare example of an anime that executes its vision perfectly, yet still falls just short of a 10/10—and that is entirely by design. Spanning both seasons, it is an incredibly solid, highly enjoyable series that knows exactly what it wants to be and delivers on that promise without missing a beat.

The primary reason it doesn't reach masterpiece status is simply that it doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. It doesn't necessarily stand out with crazy plot twists, high-stakes drama, or a wildly unique premise. It is purely a standard slice-of-life anime, but it proves that lacking a groundbreaking hook does ... not make a show bad. In fact, its simplicity is its greatest strength.

Everything from the animation and the beautiful countryside art style to the lighthearted story comes together to create a deeply relaxing watch. The series thrives on its inherent cuteness and tranquil pacing, offering a perfect escape that just lets you sit back and enjoy the atmosphere.

Ultimately, Non Non Biyori is an amazing anime done perfectly. It might not be the most unique or mind-blowing show out there, but as a cozy, heartwarming, and beautifully animated slice-of-life experience, it is virtually flawless.

Mushoku Tensei continues to stand above all other isekai because it actually understands how to build a believable world and believable characters.

The characters feel like real people, with their own intelligence, motivations, flaws, and goals. They don't exist simply to make the MC look powerful, and their decisions have genuine consequences.

Rudeus is also a refreshing protagonist because he doesn't simply **brute-force every obstacle** with an overpowered ability. Despite his strengths, there are problems he can't solve through raw power. He has to think, adapt, rely on others, make mistakes, and live with the consequences of his choices. His development feels earned rather than artificially ... forced.

The worldbuilding is another huge strength. The world feels **enormous, mysterious, and alive**. There are countless places, cultures, histories, factions, and mysteries beyond what Rudeus currently understands. It genuinely feels like the world exists independently of the protagonist.

Most importantly, the story trusts the audience. Not every mystery is immediately explained, and not every conflict exists simply to give the MC another power-up.

Mushoku Tensei isn't just about watching a powerful character conquer a fantasy world.

It's about watching a flawed person grow within a world that is far bigger than himself.

10/10.

If you are tired of forced drama, frustrating misunderstandings, and romance anime that take three seasons just for the characters to hold hands, you NEED to watch "Seihantai na Kimi to Boku" (You and I Are Polar Opposites) right now!It is hands down one of the most refreshing, wholesome, and genuinely funny rom-coms ever made. Suzuki and Tani are the definition of "opposites attract," but what makes this anime a masterpiece is how maturely they communicate. The chemistry is top-tier, the animation by Lapin Track is incredibly expressive and stylish, and the supporting cast is just as lovable as the main couple. It’s pure serotonin ... in anime form. Do yourself a favor and go watch it—it will completely restore your faith in the romance genre!

Overly sweet, saccharine, and gone in a half hour. It's the anime equivalent of a Hershey bar.

MC's in fifth grade, with a crush on a girl in his class... who he then finds out is moving away next week. Can he work up the oomph to confess his feelings to her before she leaves? If you can make it through characters with the depth of a paper plate, animation a high-school club could do a better job with, and art you routinely see on places like Deviant Art with suggestions on how it could be better, well... you'll be thankful that it's ... only a half hour long.

The music's the... least-bad I think you could call it? But other than that, well... it gives me the same kind of animation style as Super Milk-chan, if you remember all that long ago. I wasn't a fan of that show except for a few of the memes, and well... that's done better than this ever will. Try again and save yourself a half hour.

Season one is fine, even though there are questionable events that make no sense. The other side of the gate is supposed to be another world so they have different races and their own language, but with common Japanese habit and practices making the whole thing incoherent.

Additionally, there is the usual harem cliché around the main protagonist which annoys me badly. But what is really disturbing is that it seems ok for the whole production to clearly let and approve some pedo interests in the story. Simply disgusting. Also the reason I've dropped this garbage.

Summary: don't waste your time watching it.

I will keep this spoiler free, but I can not recommend this movie enough. I know its also in cinemas now in usa, belgium, canada and many more places so if it's for you go watch it. IMMEDIATELY.

The animation is breathtaking, action, camera work, colors, everything. Throughout the whole movie, from start to finish. So is the sound and music which adds perfectly to the atmosphere. They also just had... FUN with the medium, like the goofy disco ball on top of the palace LOL

The plot is super interesting and perfectly paced from start to finish with unexpected twists, emotion, tension, drama, action, etc, ... it never gets boring or too fast or too slow or drags or hard to follow. Perfectly placed for the entire 2+ hours of the movie. The movie is also hilarious without forcing it, but its really REALLY funny. And there is emotion etc too.

The characters are fun and believable and you care about them. Even the side characters are fun. No-one is singularly evil or beyond redemption, except the one main villain, but I can't say how or what without spoilers so I wont. Its definitely NOT a children's movie! or at least... you can watch it with children no problem, but its not flat like a children's movie. Despite the humor etc it has a mature story (especially clear once you consider the last half and ending, again, won't spoil).

In one word: P E R F E C T I O N. If there is a sequel I will run to the cinemas screaming, but given it had a clear ending that resolved everything, not sure if there will be. I want that or a game though. The entire rest of the audience also agreed that it was the best movie of the year, perfect, outstanding, etc, without exception as far as I could tell.

Go watch it IMMEDIATELY or if its not in cinemas for you then as soon as you can elsewere. Its AMAZING. OUTSTANDING. 11/10. Now, I am going to look up a cosplay of the swordsman character to buy :)

5 Centimeters Per Second, isn't Makoto Shinkai's best work. But I would say it's a clear indication of what was to come from him.

5CPS is one of the most well-designed animated feature of its time. The setting, composition, and visual design are like nothing else from that 2000s era. This is undeniably the backbone of all of Makoto Shinkai's future works visually. Narratively not so much.

5CPS's biggest drawback is the sauce. The plot construction heavily relies on Takaki and Akari's thoughts and still stagnant moments of silence for dramatization. This to some degree makes the plot feel a bit too plain. Unlike Makoto ... Shinkai's other works that proceed 5CPS, 5CPS doesn't have a gimmick that's nearly as interesting. Which also means that at the end, it's just not as memorable as his later works.

Overall, really great animation and visuals with an ok plot, but still worth 100% worth watching.

Would rate 5 Centimeters Per Second 7 centimeters out of 10.

Apparently, this is an adaptation of a game that can excuse some faults in this show... is what I would say if I was wired up on fent.

Animation:
It's good. But it really isn't. I couldn't help but rub my eyes during every episode because some scenes got so blurry. Maybe it was the player I was using, or my vision is getting worse, but whenever they zoomed out, it just looked so blurry, as if it were AI-generated (I know it's not). It's like they put a blur filter over and it ruins the animation for me.

Story and pacing:
Horrible. Every "arc" follows the same exact ... format. Go to the island, find a primal beast, capture that beast, and then unlock a new member. A remnant of the game, possibly, but it's horrible as a show. And the last couple of episodes are so confusing, I had doubts I was watching the right season. Did I miss a whole season? 10 new characters pulled up without an introduction and then acted like they were always there. And the last episode??? Wtf was that?

Characters:
Atrocious. The male MC reminds me of the side-character heroes in other shows. Lyria is somewhat well-written, but she's very annoying and aloof. Her power is really cool as well. And all the other members are boring and stale. No one has an interesting backstory or personality.

Overall, this show is horrible. I haven't played the game, so maybe that's why this show sucks. But as a standalone show, it's horrid. The characters are all boring, the story is decent, and the animation is weird.

This show is such a mixed bag imo, it does a lot of things right but so so much wrong for me.

First of all, the good stuff. The story is cliché, run of the mill typical isekai, but it still has its charm to it with the characters all having some sort of distinctive flaws. This adds some sort of realism instead of the typical overpowered tropes. The worldbuilding was also great with the background seeming far more lively with all sorts of conversations going on in scenes, although these frames were reused a bit. Also, I enjoyed the core premise of the story, that ... being the MC using his prior game knowledge to bring out the hidden potential of a seemingly weak class. The heavy knight is a distinct defensive type instead of the normal offensive magic used in these shows.

The issues are what everyone's been calling 'overanimation' seen throughout the show. Although it doesn't bother me as much now, with it looking more unique in recent episodes, at the start it was undeniably way over the top with every strand of hair violently being tugged by the non-existent wind. This, along with the insane camera movements doing unnecessary loops around the characters in every fight sequence, might seem like a bit too much for some. However, I personally thought it was an interesting way to show the detail of the battle from those different perspectives. The thing that was the most annoying for me is that every episode is filled with so many unnecessary scenes and flashbacks. The excessive recaps that take the entire first part of an episode and the long dragged out visuals in the middle of dialogue for no reason slow down the plot too much, leaving little actual progression. Lastly, the pacing is just straight up absolutely horrendous, with an entire episode being devoted to a single monster or one small sequence of actions. When this is paired with the random commercial break halfway which replays the entire scene from just before, it becomes too much to watch.

The thing is, when this anime isn't overusing footage, adding unnecessary detail or dragging out conversations, it's actually a great story with solid animation. Especially, with the latest episode featuring few to no reused scenes and a steady flow of content, I'm hopeful for what's to come and if it continues like this, I would recommend the show to those who find the core premise interesting.

The first ep smashes all information in your face, I had to look up if that show was running on netflix. I hoped it would get better, but this mary sue character drives me crazy and hindrance she faces is easily overcome due to goodwill and grit. Ah and she can obviously do nearly anything....
And at the current situation she is giving herself fault for enjoying her life to much, buhu...

This anime looks stunning and is somewhat enjoyable with its theme, but after each episode it gets more and more infuriating how easy she overcomes anything and how blunt any mystery gets explained the next ... minute after.

If you like apothecary diaries you may like the same themes of forbidden city and helping everyone out, but its several levels simpler and on your nose....

I can't help but feel disappointed now that I finished the first season of Apothecary Diaries, it lacks in many areas in which it was said to excel in, to be clear; I came in with 0 expectations but it's true the abundance of positivity from people in anime circles may have set a high bar as well as the current 8.8+ median score which is nothing to scoff at. Looking at the genre tags you'll see it's a Drama and Mystery and immediately this is where I start having issues with what is presented

To begin with, the mystery. The mystery parts of Apothecary Diaries ... boils down to Maomao's episodic adventures where she, a poor apothecary girl somehow manages to solve cases with her striking intellect, that she just happens to know every piece of knowledge regarding to every detail in whatever monster of the week mystery she's dealing with, everything is handed to her on a silver platter and there is virtually no friction between her and the mystery, she just solves everything, no questions asked, moving on.

Now I know all of that sounds condescending as hell from my end but that's purely because it's just unbelievable and lazy, why can this random girl come to all these conclusions? The show just typically says something to the effect of "Maomao was once curious about X thing so she knows Y answer, or X thing has to do with Y part of an Apothecary's job so she just knows", gee why aren't all detectives just pharmacists then, that totally makes sense. Maomao's self insert levels of intelligence aside, it's absurd how convenient everything is for her, everyone just listens to her and she always has all the pieces exactly where she needs them to solve the mystery, never does she get directly challenged in a way that puts her in a losing situation, things always need to go her way. Half the driving force behind the mysteries are also typically just "accidents", when the antagonistic force of a mystery is just a random spineless character who made a mistake with no actual ill intent, it loses tension very quickly. Not to say that accidents can't make good plot points, it just feels unfulfilling in Apothecary Diaries given the setting of Ancient China, in the emperors palace, which should be no stranger to malice and drama.


This leads to my next point, the "Drama" of Apothecary Diaries, which is literally just a high school romcom with a historical Chinese coat of paint. It doesn't really do much with it's setting past the surface level. There's a lot to dive into here and if I would we'd be dwelling on this for longer than need be, sticking to the broad strokes though. Nothing builds up on itself, the texture present in other acclaimed Drama/Mystery shows remains concealed, in favor of it's episodic slice of life nature.

Character's are very one dimensional and have straightforward goals, most of them are also just butterfly's that do no harm, the rare character that is "bad" is that way purely for the sake of the plot and nothing else, just so Maomao can somehow save the day once more, it's really annoying how bland it all is, opposing viewers might argue it's simple in nature by design but in all honesty. Bland is the only way you can describe it. Simplicity is when you tell a story using clear and direct methods, Apothecary Diaries does this true but that still doesn't mean the writing is magically good, in this case the story just loses all depths even though in all likelihood, it would benefit from some, especially for some of the more major characters like the emperors concubines.


A quick side tangent needs to be written about Jinshi, the secondary lead and Maomao's love interest, this character is positioned as major with great influence and power over the events of the plot, in reality he's just a one dimensional character that exists to pander to Maomao, glimpses relating to his seemingly complicated past exist and it's framed as a mystery but you can probably guess what it's gonna be from a mile away, even if they don't actually show anything substantial across the entire 24 episode season (guess you'll have to watch more dear reader)


Production wise, the soundtrack is good, Kevin Penkin once again delivers with a great assortment of Chinese folk tracks. In contrast, the visuals leave more to be desired. A few scenes are striking and leave a moderate amount of impact and emotion but overall it remains consistently average. They barely use atmospheric story telling to their advantage even though this is literally Ancient China, a gold mine for that sort of thing. though it should be noted that the color choices are acceptable. It has a nice warm look that you can't really go wrong with, lines up nicely with the color diversity present within the cast. Character motions though range from average to dizzying, there is barely any action scenes in the show to begin with so there isn't really any need to over emphasize on this point but there are times when a lot of movement is going on and the camera decides to turn into a panoramic seesaw from hell, an artistic choice by the directors maybe but it didn't lead to good results, just very awkward shots where backgrounds feel like green screens and character motions feeling stiffer as a result. Voice Acting is good as you'd come to expect, the great Yuuki Aoi is the voice of Maomao and she is perfect for the role, as much as I dislike Maomao's position in the plot I quite liked her during the slower, more comedy centric scenes as she was fun to tag along with, strengthen further by the voice acting.

Overall it wasn't bad as much as it was just disappointing, it doesn't live up to the monumental praise bestowed upon it by the masses but it still holds up as your average enjoyable slice of life show with unfortunately weaker than desirable writing. I have no will to watch the second season as this is enough Apothecary Diaries for one life time. Maybe it will do things better? I won't be finding out for myself.

What was I expecting? A good continuation to this mid ass show?? LOOOOOOOL!!!! That shit did NOT happen. To start off my reviews, I like to mention what my expectations were before starting the show, and I wasn’t expecting too much or for it to be mind blowing or anything. People have said it’s just more of the same shit as the first season, so that’s exactly what I was expecting it to be. Unfortunately, I will say that it’s a pretty fat step down from season 1 in almost every aspect. This season pretty much takes every slop quality that I don’t like about ... the first season and just amplifies it to a whole new level. The entire season is just a bunch of random side quests slammed together that have absolutely no relation with each other whatsoever. I guess that is part of the entire point of the show, but this brings me into my next point. One of the show’s main selling points is supposed to be the character development, which is just such a joke. Through all these random side quests, Frieren, Fern, and Stark are supposed to oh you know DEVELOP throughout the show, and including season 1, I really haven’t seen much of a change in character at all when it comes to all three of them from like episode 11 of the first season to the final episode of the 2nd season. Despite all the random bullshit they’ve been through, absolutely nothing about the show or their characters have changed, making the sidequests essentially pointless. It genuinely felt like I was watching the same episode 10 times in a row, with a couple exceptions (episodes 7 and 8 bring the rating up a little). To add on even more insult to injury, all 3 of their characters are boring as hell, making the show even more of a drag. On top of all of that, all of the fight scenes (besides episodes 7 and 8 of course) SUCK! I don’t know how they did it, but they made almost every fight scene so fucking boring in this season compared to the first which I guess is a positive because it’s not really a change of pace from them just walking around in the northern grasslands and tundras or whatever. One thing I will give this season its flowers for compared to the first is the improvement in animation quality. This season is absolutely beautiful, especially with some of the scenes in the second half. I’ve talked to a couple people about this, and they don’t seem to notice a difference at all. Maybe I’ve just gotten more used to this art style, but I swear it looks so much better this season.

For all of the negative reasons above, I struggled to finish season 1, and this feeling continued all throughout season 2. I’m honestly surprised that I didn’t end up dropping this season by episode 5, but that’s probably because I was motivated by the fact that I would be able to proudly write a review like this which is just me shitting on the show and only giving it the slightest amount of praise. I did give season 1 its flowers for everything it did right because I will admit that it’s pretty decent, it’s just not one of the best animes of all time like some people (and this website) say it is. I really liked the upbringing of Fern, the feeling of the world that the show takes place in, and the transitioning between arcs (besides the long boring one from like episode 11 to I think 19 or something). I will admit that my review for season 1 was pretty jumbled and kinda confusing, so I hope this one comes out more clear when I look back at it and more importantly for when other people read this. Overall, this season kinda blows, but it isn’t the worst thing ever. It’s boring which automatically makes it bad, but it isn’t an abomination or anything like that. This is especially considering some scenes in the later episodes being as well put together as they are, kind of like a lambo in a trailer park situation. This season is such a wash and I’m honestly pretty disappointed in myself for watching it after my experience with season 1. Please please please don’t watch this and spare yourself the time. I’m definitely NOT watching season 3 when it drops next year fuck that I’ll save myself the time and energy.

Last longer review in a while (I hope) I'ma try to keep things much more short and sweet from now on ts took a lot outta me.

At first, I thought it would be a fantasy comedy with a cooking gimmick as its main premise. And at least in the first part, it really was. Many episodes were so fun thanks to the creativity of turning each monster into a dish, plus the chemistry between Laios, Marcille, Chilchuck, and Senshi that brought the dungeon journey to life.

What I grew to like more and more is the way the story builds the dungeon to feel like a real ecosystem. Each monster has its own behaviors and relationships to its environment. Food, resources, and survival are constantly interconnected, making those small details that looked ... like gags in the beginning gain deeper meaning as you keep watching.

The Red Dragon arc was the point where I felt the story clearly shifted its weight. The stakes got higher, and the themes of eating and death started blending together in a way that is quite disturbing. After that, the story opens up into questions around magic, the body, identity, and the dividing line between humans and monsters, which is the part I am most interested in this season.

I love how the story uses monsters or situations in the dungeon as tools to explore the characters, especially the Shapeshifter and the Nightmare, which let us see the perceptions and fears of each character while remaining naturally integrated into the plot. Senshi is also a great example of how cooking can become a matter of memory, survival, and trauma without needing to shift the storytelling style into heavy exposition.

Another interesting thing is that later on, the story starts revealing that the dungeon has its own history and power structures far beyond what I initially expected. The Golden Country, the Mad Mage, and the different groups involved with the dungeon expand the world from the adventure of a single party into a much larger problem. This makes me curious about how far the next season will take the story.

For me it's a hard to review anime.

I really liked the comedy and how light hearted it was. The animation was okay and I liked the style. Characters were nothing special, but somewhat likeable and I rooted for them most of the time.

But what really dragged it down was the chatakter Mirika. The things that she did were not funny at all and I don't get why they choose to put this in a light hearted series. If the genders would be the opposite, everyone would have hated the anime.

All in all it's not a waste of time, but also nothing that I would recommend.

It’s a fantastic sports story; although it revolves around two main characters, there is a vast cast, each with their own backstory. We primarily follow the team the protagonists belong to—a squad whose golden age has long since passed and is now being rebuilt little by little.

Among the main characters, there is Hinata, a boy who discovered his passion for volleyball somewhat late. Having grown up in an area without a volleyball team, he still has a lot to learn, but he possesses unique talent and speed that will help him become one of the best.

Then there is Kageyama, a naturally gifted player who believes ... he can win matches on his own—an attitude that causes him plenty of trouble. I think he is one of the characters who undergoes the most growth throughout the first season.

The animation is brilliant; you always know exactly what is happening during a match and feel like you’re right there in the action. There are epic scenes accompanied by the opening theme that feel absolutely amazing.

I consider it one of the best sports anime out there. While I found the occasional match predictable and the pacing wasn't always perfect, I still enjoyed it immensely.

今は現存しないが、少し調べてみた。内容はタイトル通り、人間の血を吸う小さな虫のノミの夫婦が中心となり、人間にひどい目に遭わされたことに対して、何かスカッとするような仕返しを仕掛けるドタバタコメディだったみたいだ。

ノミという小さな生き物の視点から人間への仕返しを描くという発想自体、当時としてはユニークで面白かったのではないかと想像する。

みることができないのは惜しいけど、日本アニメの黎明期を支えた貴重な一歩として歴史の記録だけでも大切に記憶に留めておきたい。

The film no longer exists today, but I decided to look into its history. Judging by the unique title, the story apparently centered around a tiny married couple of fleas. After being mistreated by humans, these small blood-sucking insects sought their revenge, which likely resulted in a highly satisfying and hilarious slapstick comedy.Personally, I imagine that the core concept itself must have been incredibly unique and entertaining for that era. Depicting a revenge story from the perspective of such tiny creatures turning the tables on humans sounds like a highly creative approach for audiences back in 1917.It is a true shame that we cannot watch ... the actual animation today. However, even if only written historical records remain, this short stands as a valuable milestone that paved the way for the dawn of Japanese animation, and it definitely deserves to be remembered forever.

気になって調べてみると、この幸内純一監督による茶目坊空気銃の巻は、日本で初めて上映禁止処分を受けたアニメというものすごく尖った歴史を持つ伝説の作品だった。
いたずらっ子の主人公が空気銃で街の人に悪さを仕掛ける内容だったらしく、当時の警察から「子供にいたずらを教えるなんて、よろしくない映画だ」と激怒されて速攻で映画館から撤去されてしまったそうだ。

残念ながらフィルムは一切現存していないため、実際のアニメーション映像を観ることはできないが、たぶん当時のトムとジェリーのような笑えるドタバタギャグアニメだったのだろうなーと推測。

本作は文字の記録しか残っていないのが本当に残念。
いつかフィルムが発掘されることを願いつつ、日本アニメの歴史の重要な一歩として記憶に留めておきたい。

When I looked into this work, I found out that "Chamebou Kuukijuu no Maki," directed by Junichi Kouchi, is actually a legendary short film known as the very first anime to be banned in Japan.The story apparently featured a mischievous main character playing pranks on townspeople with an air gun. The police at the time got absolutely furious, claiming it would teach children bad behavior, and immediately pulled it from theaters. Unfortunately, no film footage exists today, making it impossible to watch the actual animation. However, based on these historical records, I guess it was probably a hilarious, slapstick comedy filled with energetic pranks, much ... like a pre-war version of "Tom and Jerry."It is a true shame that only written records remain for this particular work. While sincerely hoping that a copy of the film might miraculously surface from an old warehouse someday, it is an important milestone in Japanese animation history that deserves to be remembered forever