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last week I watched Excel Saga
Insane and hilarious. Everything about it was great. The absurdity, the mix of unrelated storylines, the characters, the humour, the meta, the fun.

After the gremlins caused some of the Cloud Matsuri panels to restart and people made Endless 8 jokes it made me want to rewatch The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
It's such a good show with a great story and great characters and Kyon is such a good narrator for the series. Also I rewatched every episode of the Endless 8 arc and I'm really glad I did as when you know what happens in the movie it makes watching the gang and Yuki in particular way more emotionally impactful. Also the changes although gradual, are more significant than I remembered and it does a good job of going from slice of life to a horror vibe with the use of music and how Kyons reaction to deja vu changes. Also the movie is an absolute masterpiece that ties up the series really well. Also the emotional weight of the film is definitely heightened by having seen every episode before hand. Not just for the Easter eggs but you get a much more invested feel for Yuki's frustration.
 
Allison & Lillia Episodes 21 to 26 (complete)

Yes some of the plots were a bit silly, but a good adventure series with good music
 
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Interspecies Reviewers (Japanese audio) - Uncensored Episodes 9-10
 
Monogatari Series: Second Season episodes 23-28 (End)
Aside from Onimonogatari (kinda regret not skipping that arc) this season was actually pretty damn good. Sure is great that this season focused on characters that weren't Araragi.

Dorohedoro episode 3

Guilty Crown episodes 15-16

MondaysClaymore1726
TuesdaysMonogatari Series: Second Season2828
WednesdaysGatchaman Crowds312
ThursdaysAldnoah.Zero 2nd Season612
FridaysMobile Suit Gundam1842
SaturdaysKämpfer812
SundaysWelcome to the NHK!1424
ExtraGuilty Crown1622
Remaining Series - 62
Remaining Movies - 27
Remaining Other - 11
 
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Puella Magi Madoka Magica - Episodes 7 - 12 [Final] (Blu-ray)

Professor Irony said:
Not to be too down on it, because I know it means a lot to some folk and I haven't seen much of it, but I had a similar experience with that one. Admittedly, I was a bit put off due to how much people used to go on about it (take a sip every time someone says 'it's a deconstruction'), but yeah, I don't know. It's fine, I guess? Maybe it means more if you're more versed in typical magical girl tropes, but it just wasn't my thing.
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I have to admit the last 3 episodes were actually very good, it was just that a lot of the preceding 9 episodes felt kind of pointless. The Magical Girl genre is not particularly my bag and admittedly I haven't seen much of it but I have been intrigued to delve back and watch Creamy Mami and the like.

UFO Warrior Dai Apolon - Episodes 1 - 3

This was going to be the next series for review on the mecha podcast but I've changed my mind.
 
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Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-Director's Cut eps 1-3
There's some intrigue, but there's still a lot of information that hasn't been explained including what, if any, the aim/end point might be. Also some of it, dare I say, is a little dull especially what would have been episode 1A originally.
 
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WMD said:
Also I rewatched every episode of the Endless 8 arc and I'm really glad I did as when you know what happens in the movie it makes watching the gang and Yuki in particular way more emotionally impactful.
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You see, I'm a fan of the Endless Eight as well, and for the same reasons.

I also like how the Endless Eight is kinda like what you'd get if you handed the same script to different groups of animators. There are definite differences in style and tone between episodes, and I've always liked how (aside from their school uniforms) the characters don't have default costumes, so everyone's clothing varies between episodes, even outside of the Endless Eight. And that kind of detail is one of the marks of KyoAni, really.

Thoughts are with them still. They gave us a classic when they made Haruhi.
 
Neil.T said:
You see, I'm a fan of the Endless Eight as well, and for the same reasons.

I also like how the Endless Eight is kinda like what you'd get if you handed the same script to different groups of animators. There are definite differences in style and tone between episodes, and I've always liked how (aside from their school uniforms) the characters don't have default costumes, so everyone's clothing varies between episodes, even outside of the Endless Eight. And that kind of detail is one of the marks of KyoAni, really.

Thoughts are with them still. They gave us a classic when they made Haruhi.
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Yeah. In my mind I remembered the middle 6 epsiodes as being the same bar costume changes. But watching them all in a row I released that theres so much more going on. Different camera angles, different pieces of the same conversations, Kyons reactions becoming more scared/desperate. And that sense of frustration in their helplessness. Also the answer that solves the time loop is so well hinted at and buried at the same time. In pretty sure if it had been released as a movie rather than 8 epsiodes it would be universally loved.

I dont think I ever realised it was KyoAni. It shouldn't surprise me. Everything I've seen out of that studio has been excellent!
 
Senryu Girl (English Dub) Episode 1-12 (Complete)

Plunderer Episode 21

Tamayomi: The Baseball Girls Episode 10 A good match so far.

Tower of God Episode 10 Demands and Negotiations.
 
WMD said:
Also the answer that solves the time loop is so well hinted at and buried at the same time.
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It really is, isn't it? I remember how, the first time I watched the Endless Eight, I particularly noted one of the episodes that featured a sort of plane motif, with jet trails or something. (If I'm remembering that right; it's been a while since I last saw any Haruhi.)

I'd started to believe that the answer was somehow related to that image, so it worked as a rather neat red herring in the end, I thought, even if it was probably unintentional.

As for the Endless Eight arc itself, I've read comments along the lines of how it "should've been covered in a single episode", but I totally agree with you: it really does help to bring you fully in line with Yuki Nagato's mindset, which I think is pretty essential to being able to really appreciate Disappearance of Haruhi.

WMD said:
I dont think I ever realised it was KyoAni.
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Oh, it's Kyoto Animation all right. 🙂

Haruhi was the first KyoAni thing I ever saw, and it remains a firm favourite. That fourth episode, with Nagato's unexpected battle scene against Asakura was a watershed moment in anime viewing for me.
 
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Karin Episodes 1 to 8

Latest series from my (ever decreasing) region 1 pile, forgot how funny the series is at the start
 
Neil.T said:
As for the Endless Eight arc itself, I've read comments along the lines of how it "should've been covered in a single episode", but I totally agree with you: it really does help to bring you fully in line with Yuki Nagato's mindset, which I think is pretty essential to being able to really appreciate Disappearance of Haruhi.
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God a single epsiode would have butchered it! I used to think it could have been done in 4 episodes rather than 8 but now I'm glad it exists the way it is. Although a movie would have made it more accepted in my view the episodic nature really gets into the heart of the time loop and how brutal if would be to go through that.

Neil.T said:
That fourth episode
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That is a cracking episode. Having had a quick look the first KyoAni I would have watched was the Full Metal Panic stuff. Fumoffu still being one of my all time favourite comedies. But Haruhi was quite likely the second. Also looking at the list of the studios work, of what I've seen, I've thoroughly enjoyed to loved every one. Their output is incredible.
 
Ahiru no Sora episode 34 Momoharu makes a stand.

TAMAYOMI: The Baseball Girls episode 10 Getting to work.

Tower of God episode 10 Reconciliation and reveal.

Blue Seed episodes 22-26 (Complete. A solid science-fiction series with some drawbacks like semi-frequent panty visual gags earlier on in the story. Curious to see what the beyond OVAs offer.) 3.5/5

Blue Seed Beyond OVAs 1-3, recaps, omakes and Special (Complete. Two decent if not great successor episodes and a hot springs episode with some worthy karaoke, the rest of this are the bits and pieces included with the SDBD.) 3/5
 
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Gatchaman Crowds episodes 4-6

Dorohedoro episodes 4-5

MondaysClaymore1726
TuesdaysTsukimonogatari04
WednesdaysGatchaman Crowds612
ThursdaysAldnoah.Zero 2nd Season612
FridaysMobile Suit Gundam1842
SaturdaysKämpfer812
SundaysWelcome to the NHK!1424
ExtraGuilty Crown1622
Remaining Series - 62
Remaining Movies - 27
Remaining Other - 11
 
Re:ZERO Director's Cut eps 4-6
I'm still not really hooked. We've learned a little more about everything, but I don't really care. I'm not sure why, maybe it's the double length format make things dragged out or the length of the arcs, both so far have been the equivalent of 6 normal episodes again making them a bit dragged out. Also I'm not really liking the characters much especially Subaru, again can't really say why, he's a weird mix of arrogant and a goody-goody. Also there interactions are odd, I know Subaru gets to know them well because he has at 3 times the knowledge of each of them due to his resets, but why by the end of basically a week are most of them fawning over him? The only interaction I like is Subaru and Beatrice.
 
Rascal does not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai
Overall I enjoyed it. Most if it was good but the final arc was great. I had this feeling throughout of it being like Clannad but neither as funny or as tear jerking. But the final story arc managed to hit the feels
 
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