Your anime viewing journal

Otomo said:
Yandere Dark Elf
Episodes 5-8🎉

Princess Principal
Crown Handler Part 1
Had this since it came out but was in no rush as who know when it'll be finished.
I was thinking about Cavorite and that prompted me to watch.

Randoms

GITS SAC S1 E17
Angel's Share
I'm a sucker for an episode focused on Aramaki.

Super Sonico
Episode 12
Love this episode.
Friendship saves the day.
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Princess Principal is one of my all time favorite series. It combines steampunk with cute girl spies and is totally kickass plus it has an excellent soundtrack so what's not to like?
 
Mission: Yozakura Family Season 2 Episode 12 (Complete. A good first cour to this second season for I too will also be watching the next half in October.) 3.5/5

Wistoria: Wand and Sword Season 2 Episode 24 (Complete. This was a better season than the first, so I'll be watching the newly announced third season when it eventually airs.) 3.5/5
 
The Ghost in the Shell Cinema Event

I was looking forward to this as the trailers have got me really hyped for this adaptation and it didn't disappoint. It felt familiar yet refreshingly new at the same time, love the tone and the way it looks, can't wait for it to start in July.

Super Heavyweight God Gravion Zwei - Episodes 9 - 11

These episodes have been really good and the mecha action has been fantastic.

Fist of the North Star (2026) - Episode 14 [Final]

What a great episode, this first part ended on a real high, I never thought I be saying this a few months ago but roll on 2027!!!

Snowball Earth - Episode 13 [Final]

Snowball Earth is a very odd series and a bit all over the place and this episode epitomises that, but this episode was quite good, it made me laugh and tied up some loose ends which led to ending this first part on a good note.

Urotsukidoji - Episodes 1 - 3

Watching Discotek's release of this notorious 'classic' and the first time I've watched it maybe 20 years. It's good to watch it in it's original OVA format again (having owned the UK VHS & DVD film releases but only seeing the OVAs on fansub). Watching it now brings back a lot of fond memories of that journey of discovery during the early to mid 90's VHS anime scene.
 
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The World is Dancing episode 1 Forms.

Nodame Cantabile: Paris-Hen episodes 1-11 & OVA (Complete. A very good continuation which sees a change of scenery and growth for the leads.) 4/5
 
Fist of the North Star (2026) ep1-5

I was dismissive of this back when it started, certainly not helped by the cringe-inducing (but at least human-made) English dub, but it’s actually grown on me quite a bit. The CG animation can’t hold a candle to Orange’s work on Trigun, but it does seem to be improving noticeably as the show goes on and it cracks along at a good pace. It’s certainly been interesting revisiting FotNS, I still really enjoy the first arc with Ken’s search for Shin and Yuria.

The Ghost in the Shell ep1-2 Cinema Preview

One of my friends who saw this before me was fairly critical of the new adaptation, so I was prepared for the worst, but broadly speaking, I quite liked it. Initial impressions were that it feels very informed by Saru’s work on Dan Da Dan, both in how much it emphasises the manga’s occasional humour and how Kusanagi reads a lot more like a typical teenage anime protagonist than she usually does (ironically, much more so than she did in Arise), but it seems to be settling more by the end of the second episode, and I’m keen to see what it’ll do going forwards. Trying to put the original manga on screen was an unenviable task, I don’t think it lends itself that well to TV, but this feels like it’s pulled Shirow’s fragmented bag of ideas into something with much cleaner flow. The soundtrack is also really good; very jazzy.
 
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HWR said:
Nodame Cantabile episodes 10-23 & OVA (Complete. A music/performance focused anime with an adult cast, this was a great watch, and I’m keen to see how the continuations fare.) 4/5

Nodame Cantabile: Paris-Hen episodes 1-11 & OVA (Complete. A very good continuation which sees a change of scenery and growth for the leads.) 4/5

Nodame Cantabile: Finale episodes 1-11 & OVA (Complete. A satisfying finale and overall a great series that deserves more attention.) 4/5
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Awesome, I loved Nodame Cantabile! I even imported the Australian R4 DVD of the original series, but I have not seen the OVAs yet - although I do have fansubs of them to watch. I would love to see all of it released on Blu-ray someday, but that's probably just wishful thinking.
 
Girls with Guns said:
Awesome, I loved Nodame Cantabile! I even imported the Australian R4 DVD of the original series, but I have not seen the OVAs yet - although I do have fansubs of them to watch. I would love to see all of it released on Blu-ray someday, but that's probably just wishful thinking.
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Indeed, I’d love Discotek Media to acquire the series.
 
HWR said:
Now and Then, Here and There episodes 1-11
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Aah! You're killing me! Another great anime series, and another one I wish had a Blu-ray release!

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Chainsmoker Cat ep 1

So I was suckered in by the absurd title and concept. I was hoping this would be a genuine and sincere attempt at some ludicrous cigarette themed show (as unappealing and boring as "cat girl is addicted to cigarettes" sounds as a central theme, I applaud attempts at realising ridiculous ideas) and not just an elaborate advert for Japanese big tobacco even though I suspected it would be. Well I certainly didn't have to wait long to find the answer, as the opening scene after the OP is literally a totemic image of a packet of real life Japanese cigarette brand Mevius being seductively, almost sexually described and opened by the protagonist Yaniko. And clearly Mevius has splashed a decent amount on this load of rubbish as it's lavishly animated, you've never seen smoking animated as lovingly as this. Yaniko is an impoverished "anthro" cat girl with precarious employment whose life revolves around ciggies and lives from puff to puff. Her flat is a tar stained temple of filth and cigarette butts that she desperately searches through for one long enough to smoke with relish. She's portrayed as a sexy slob, mooching around in Crocs, largely content with her empty, nicotine addled lifestyle. This almost brings to mind something like Kyoichi Tsuzuki's "Happy Victims" (albeit devoting ones life to fags seems a lot sadder than fashion) and feels like it could almost work as commentary on the destructive mindset of addiction in general. But something about it feels sneering and cynical to me, which I guess is not surprising knowing that big tobacco is behind it. It feels as if the CEOs of Mevius are mocking the, quite literally, dirty dehumanised indentured proles who are strung out on their products.

I had a quick look at impressions online and I'm surprised that some seem to think this is an anti-smoking show, even without the non stop Mevius product placement giving the game away, it just obviously is not an anti smoking work. The style the show seems to be aiming for is very "90s crass shock value" and I'm also reminded of 90s subversive advertising like Death cigarettes for example. The Marlboro man won't cut it anymore, and there's no point denying smoking causes cancer and is bad for you, but maybe something (semi) self aware and grotesque and sexy and cute like Chainsmoker Cat might get the youngins off the vapes and back on the snouts? That's what I think the logic was behind this.
 
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Dara-san of Reiwa episode 1 Anchor point.

Now and Then, Here and There episodes 12-13 (Complete. A late 90s offering and a rather dramatic start to the month in terms of story and ideas.) 3.5/5

Nyaruko: Crawling with Love! episodes 1-9
 
Undead Unluck: Winter Arc (English) - TV Special (Complete)

I've been waiting for this to pop-up on Disney+ for a while now and it was good to jump back into this world even if only briefly. This episode is definitely more of a set-up for the next season while focusing on some of the side characters and their backstories, it was a good watch though, looking forward to S2.

Non-Anime

Agatha All Along - Episode 6 - 9 (Complete)

I'm attempting to catch up on the MCU again, at least the live-action entries and this has been on-hold for me for a few months now but I quite enjoyed this series, definitely one of the more unique titles and a sequel of sorts to the fantastic WandaVision. It doesn't hit the highs of that series but I had a good time still and I enjoyed the cast.

Captain America: Brave New World - Movie (Complete)

This is the first MCU movie I've watched since Deadpool & Wolverine back in 2024 so it has been a little while and I've quite missed these movies personally. This was a really good time and Anthony Mackie as Captain America made a great lead, definitely succeeded in holding his own movie. There were some really cool action scenes as well and I liked that it wrapped up some storylines all the way back from The Incredible Hulk from 2008 which is a guilty pleasure movie for me and I have some nostalgia for it.

Next up is S1 of Daredevil: Born Again, the original series is my all time favourite Marvel series so I'm really looking forward to this one. The plan is to hopefully catch up on the MCU prior to Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
 
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Pokemon Sun and Moon - Ep 1-5

My gosh, is this series all that I hoped it would be. Colorful, chill, wholesome, but also exciting and I like that Ash has a bit of a home this time. I have to get used to some of the different voices and the new team rocket motto (I grew up watching this in Dutch anyway, so its unavoidable anyway), but that will be fine after some time. Sometimes its hard to find the words to describe why I like something. I know Pokemon has a lot of things you should not think all to hard about, otherwise it would not make sense. But I love how wholesome and at the some time adventurous it feels. I want to explore this island and meet all the Pokemon and learn about their personalities and see them making friends and overcome their challenges. I want to see all the lush greenery. I love the expressiveness of the animation of this series. Its all so relaxing, a perfect summer vacation fit.
 
Herano said:
Pokemon Sun and Moon - Ep 1-5

My gosh, is this series all that I hoped it would be. Colorful, chill, wholesome, but also exciting and I like that Ash has a bit of a home this time. I have to get used to some of the different voices and the new team rocket motto (I grew up watching this in Dutch anyway, so its unavoidable anyway), but that will be fine after some time. Sometimes its hard to find the words to describe why I like something. I know Pokemon has a lot of things you should not think all to hard about, otherwise it would not make sense. But I love how wholesome and at the some time adventurous it feels. I want to explore this island and meet all the Pokemon and learn about their personalities and see them making friends and overcome their challenges. I want to see all the lush greenery. I love the expressiveness of the animation of this series. Its all so relaxing, a perfect summer vacation fit.
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Sun & Moon really didn't deserved to be so dogged on just because of its change in art style, it is such a wholesome and charming series. I'm glad to see more people enjoying it, I hope you enjoy the rest going forward!
 
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