Eden of the East: This is Obviously Political (5th Day of Anime 2018)

Basically, the only thing separating this from other shows of its ilk is the fact it shows dissatisfaction for the Heisei era. With the Showa era predicted to reach its end in 2019 when the current emperor abdicates his throne, it feels somewhat odd to watch Eden of the East, with its ideas encapsulating how...

The Importance of the Sequential Nature of Media (6th Day of Anime 2018)

How important is it to have a set chronological order in which to consume media? I’d obtained a copy of Usagi Drop from my local library and was about to watch it, only to get interrupted by something outside. When I returned and started up the disc, I only realised after 3 episodes and 2...

Kuroko no Basuke Won Me Over

…not that you needed to know that because I already mentioned it in the Megane Day post in October, but for someone like me who isn’t into basketball, that means a lot. In my early days of being a blogger, I had prejudices against certain kinds of works I perceived to be “too popular”. Some...

Idolish7 and the Pride of an Idol (7th Day of Anime 2018)

There ain't anything better in a pinch than an unused OWLS post. Meta context: I was unhappy with how the post on Shinkai movies (which was listed on the spreadsheet as the 7th day for a while) turned out, so that's been pushed back to January. I still have this post from when I was...

Starting ReLIFE in Another World (8th Day of Anime 2018)

ReLIFE: Kanketsu-hen was one of those things I never thought would come to any streaming service, except maybe HiDive, but if collaborations between services has ever taught me one thing, it’s that competitors like to try to provide everything under their licence umbrellas… ReLIFE: Kanketsu-hen was an abrupt, albeit satisfying, conclusion to the work I...

The State of Anime, Manga and Associated Merchandise in 2018 (9th Day of Anime 2018)

I.e. ...an opportunity to experiment with how the new editor handles images by updating you on my merch collection. (This time with proper pics, so everyone and Shoka, get excited!) I mentioned I got a volunteer gig in October. While that can be draining and I'd like to complain a lot more about how I don't...

Should Anime Cater to “Overseas Markets”? (10th Day of Anime 2018)

Some people, like Takayuki Nagatani (who's been on the staff for shows like Hataraku Maou-sama! and Flip Flappers), have been focussing on overseas markets...but is that really the best move for the industry? The interview I linked to up top begged a bunch of questions about original anime - what are some of the arguments...

Merc Storia’s Coming-of-Age (11th Day of Anime 2018)

In a sense, Merc Storia is about kids wanting to be seen as capable and mature. Even though the storyline mostly follows this concept, there is one storyline with a reversal of this aspect. Somehow, I felt like my piece on kodomomuke anime kind of missed the point about what I was trying to say...

Golden Kamuy’s Attitude Towards Food (12th Day of Anime 2018)

One of the most unexpected elements from Golden Kamuy is probably its dedication to cooking, at first glance… Food means a lot in Golden Kamuy. It’s used as gags, it’s got cultural significance, meat can be used as a metaphor for other themes, such as death and masculinity, while taste is just one of those...

12 Days of Anime, Round 2 (Update Post)

I was looking over my 12 Days of Anime posts yesterday because the new editor was threatening to put them out at 8 pm rather than my usual 9 am, my time...and I've got too much to say anyway which is cluttering up the "update post" section of the next round-up post, so I might...